K-P govt to build a school named after opener Fakhar Zaman

Education minister Atif Khan announces the school will be built in the opener's village in Katlang tehsil, Mardan

PESHAWAR: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government will build a new school in the province and name it after Fakhar Zaman, the opening batsman who played an instrumental role in the Pakistan cricket team's victory in the Champions Trophy final against India.

K-P Minister for Elementary and Secondary Education Atif Khan called up the star batsman, who belongs to Katlang tehsil of Mardan district, on Monday and congratulated him on his performance and the team’s victory against arch-rivals India, the minister's media adviser Najiullah Khattak told The Express Tribune.

According to Khattak, Khan also spoke to Zaman’s father, Faqir Gul, and discussed the situation of education in their village.

The minister told Gul that the country was proud of his son and Mardan, the district Khan also belongs to.



Khattak said on Zaman and his father’s request, Khan had announced that a new public school would be built in the cricketer's village.

Khan decided that it would be named after Zaman. Its construction will start after Eid and it will be equipped with all modern facilities.

Zaman was born in Enzergay village and moved to Karachi at the age of 16. He joined the Pakistan Navy but switched his attention to cricket after a year. Zaman made his first-class cricket debut in 2013 with the Karachi Blues. He had a fantastic run in last year’s Pakistan Cup where he scored 297 runs in five matches, including two 50s and a century.

In Sunday’s Champions Trophy final, Zaman scored 114 runs against India and was bagged the man of the match award.

Bahria Town has also announced a one-kanal plot in Bahria Town for Zaman for his performance.

Zaman belongs to a poor family and he is the youngest of five brothers. His father works as a farmer while his elder brother is a teacher in the Government High School Katlang.