Sindh's daughters and sons forced to study under the scorching sun
In the absence of basic facilities, this public school in Karachi conducts classes in the open
Despite all its tall claims and promises, the Sindh Government has failed to address the dire state of education in the province. This school in the economic hub of the country is a testament to the officials' apathy. PHOTO: EXPRESS
KARACHI:
A teacher stands at the head of the class, shouting at the students to concentrate. The students, though eager to learn, find it increasingly difficult to focus as the noon sun burns bright above. The cover provided by the neem trees, under which the class is being held, is hardly enough to save them from the scorching heat.
The class is segregated - one group for the girls and one for the boys. Each group sits on whatever space they can find on the plastic mats and old bed sheets. The most unfortunate are the ones on the peripheries - here, there is no shade and only the muddy ground to sit on.
This is not some school in a far-flung village. This is the "Irfania Government Primary School" in Federal B Area Block 21 in Karachi.
"This is not a flung area. This government school is located in Karachi, which is known as the economic hub of Pakistan. These students are deprived of all basic facilities, including electricity, water, toilet and furniture," remarked an enraged teacher, who has posted there for the last four years.
Education reform effort falls by the wayside
Origins
According to government records, the school was built around 20 years ago. At the time, it comprised two classrooms and an office for the headmaster.
As time passed, the pathetic condition of the classrooms and the crumbling roof forced teachers to conduct the classes under the open sky, finding whatever cover they could under the trees in the courtyard.
"Since there is no electricity, we sit outside under these trees," said Arshad Abbas, the headmaster. "There was no power when I joined four years ago. I got kunda [an illegal electricity connection] for the school to save the students from scorching heat. Now, K-Electric has replaced copper wires with bundle cables to prevent theft. So now we have no other option, but to continue teaching in this condition."
The school records show that a total of 78 students are enrolled, with only two teachers posted there. One of the teachers, requesting anonymity, said, "The people who monitor educational activities visit every month to check our biometric record. Every time, we register our complaint to provide us with the basic facilities, but no one pays any attention to it," he said. "Around 103 students were enrolled here three years ago. This number now stands at 78. If this situation continues, this school will add another number to the list of 7,000 ghost schools of Sindh," the teacher said.
Official apathy
The headmaster, showing the applications he has written to higher authorities, said that except two teachers, government has neither provided a peon nor a watchman for the school. "Every year, I receive Rs14,000 for the school management committee fund. I use it for school expenses like stationary. I can't build a school with just Rs14,000," Abbas lamented.
Poor policies?: Rawalpindi education in doldrums
Sharing their plight, the students said that due to no functional toilets, they had to go home or to the nearby bushes. "There is no water in our toilet," one of the students said.
According to the headmaster, he had also requested the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) to provide a water connection for the school, but they also turned a blind eye to his request. "KWSB officials have given illegal connections to many factories located around our school, but no one cooperates with us," Abbas remarked.
Last month, the Sindh Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah had enrolled his daughter in a government school in Hyderabad promising to revamp the condition of all government schools in Sindh.
Despite many attempts, the contact with the education minister and secretary could not be established and School Education Director Hamid Kareem also avoided talking on the issue. "Not only one school, we have a list of hundreds of such schools that lack basic facilities in Sindh. We are launching a scheme worth millions of rupees to resolve this issue," an additional secretary of education said, requesting not to be named.
A teacher stands at the head of the class, shouting at the students to concentrate. The students, though eager to learn, find it increasingly difficult to focus as the noon sun burns bright above. The cover provided by the neem trees, under which the class is being held, is hardly enough to save them from the scorching heat.
The class is segregated - one group for the girls and one for the boys. Each group sits on whatever space they can find on the plastic mats and old bed sheets. The most unfortunate are the ones on the peripheries - here, there is no shade and only the muddy ground to sit on.
This is not some school in a far-flung village. This is the "Irfania Government Primary School" in Federal B Area Block 21 in Karachi.
"This is not a flung area. This government school is located in Karachi, which is known as the economic hub of Pakistan. These students are deprived of all basic facilities, including electricity, water, toilet and furniture," remarked an enraged teacher, who has posted there for the last four years.
Education reform effort falls by the wayside
Origins
According to government records, the school was built around 20 years ago. At the time, it comprised two classrooms and an office for the headmaster.
As time passed, the pathetic condition of the classrooms and the crumbling roof forced teachers to conduct the classes under the open sky, finding whatever cover they could under the trees in the courtyard.
"Since there is no electricity, we sit outside under these trees," said Arshad Abbas, the headmaster. "There was no power when I joined four years ago. I got kunda [an illegal electricity connection] for the school to save the students from scorching heat. Now, K-Electric has replaced copper wires with bundle cables to prevent theft. So now we have no other option, but to continue teaching in this condition."
The school records show that a total of 78 students are enrolled, with only two teachers posted there. One of the teachers, requesting anonymity, said, "The people who monitor educational activities visit every month to check our biometric record. Every time, we register our complaint to provide us with the basic facilities, but no one pays any attention to it," he said. "Around 103 students were enrolled here three years ago. This number now stands at 78. If this situation continues, this school will add another number to the list of 7,000 ghost schools of Sindh," the teacher said.
Official apathy
The headmaster, showing the applications he has written to higher authorities, said that except two teachers, government has neither provided a peon nor a watchman for the school. "Every year, I receive Rs14,000 for the school management committee fund. I use it for school expenses like stationary. I can't build a school with just Rs14,000," Abbas lamented.
Poor policies?: Rawalpindi education in doldrums
Sharing their plight, the students said that due to no functional toilets, they had to go home or to the nearby bushes. "There is no water in our toilet," one of the students said.
According to the headmaster, he had also requested the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board (KWSB) to provide a water connection for the school, but they also turned a blind eye to his request. "KWSB officials have given illegal connections to many factories located around our school, but no one cooperates with us," Abbas remarked.
Last month, the Sindh Education Minister Syed Sardar Shah had enrolled his daughter in a government school in Hyderabad promising to revamp the condition of all government schools in Sindh.
Despite many attempts, the contact with the education minister and secretary could not be established and School Education Director Hamid Kareem also avoided talking on the issue. "Not only one school, we have a list of hundreds of such schools that lack basic facilities in Sindh. We are launching a scheme worth millions of rupees to resolve this issue," an additional secretary of education said, requesting not to be named.