Pakistan: Seven schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa shut due to lack of teachers, security concerns
Islamabad, Nov 2 (IANS) As many as seven government girls' private schools in Bara tehsil of Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been shut due to lack of teachers and security concerns, local media reported on Monday.
Among the 310 sanctioned teaching posts in government primary schools in Bara tehsil, only 209 posts remain occupied while 101 teaching posts are vacant, according to the statistics released by the Sub-Divisional Education Office (Female), Bara.
Among the 142 government primary schools in Bara, four schools have been shut for shortage of teachers and three for law and order situation, according to the documents from the education department. Schools shut over shortage of teachers include Government Girls Primary School Tangi Nazar Khel Bargambar Khel, Government Girls Primary School Ham Kalay Tarkhuks Upper Bara, Government Girls Primary School Haji Mina Dar Khan Kalay Akakhel and Government Girls Primary School Khuga Jan Bara.
The schools closed over the law and order situation include Government Girls Primary School Khwaja Kalay Tirah, Government Girls Primary School Muhammad Din Shah and Government Girls Primary School Zale Khan Tirah. The closure of the schools has impacted the education of local girls, while the lack of staff has impacted education in the schools that continue to operate in Bara, as per the report.
Speaking to 'The Express Tribune', Sub-Divisional Education Officer (Female) Bara Shakeela Hussain said that the growing number of students has further intensified the crisis as the majority of the primary schools in the sub-division have only one or two permanent female teachers, while around 500 students study in some of these schools.
Meanwhile, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elementary and secondary education department has revealed that 4,049 government schools in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province have been declared in 'dilapidated' condition and require immediate reconstruction and rehabilitation to ensure the safety of students and teachers.
A total of Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 16.2 billion will be needed to reconstruct and repair these schools, according to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa elementary and secondary education department's initial estimates. The department said that the structures which need reconstruction and rehabilitation include 8,088 classrooms, 2,949 group latrines and 48 examination halls, another Pakistan-based another daily Dawn reported.
The department conducted a survey in government schools after a private school building collapsed in Dir Colony of Peshawar in October, Dawn reported.
--IANS
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