THE disparity in salaries of government servants in various departments is strange. The salaries of officers of law-enforcement agencies and the judicial staff are higher than government school teachers of the same grade.

When it comes to education, the government seems to pay no heed; be it at federal or provincial level. The employees of BPS-14 in law-enforcement agencies are drawing salaries that are 300 per cent higher than employees of the same pay scale in other departments, especially in education.

Teachers are white-collared and credible members of society. The developed nations are where they are today because they pay due respect to their teachers in all circumstances.

If the government cannot afford to make the salaries equal, the least it can do is to increase the salaries of those working in the education department so that they too are able to survive in a dignified manner.

Mustafa Kemal Ataturk rightly said: “The teachers are the one and only people who save the nations”.

Faheem Hussain

Sukkur

Published in Dawn, February 20th, 2021