K-P notifies hiring of over 2,700 teachers in NMTDs

DEOs directed to check documents of successful teachers and take their interviews

PESHAWAR: With the chief minister directing to expedite the recruitment of teachers and other staff at schools in the newly merged tribal districts, the provincial education minister on Friday sanctioned hundreds of new vacancies of the education department at some 484 schools in the seven tribal districts.

A notification issued by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Finance Department for NMTDs, read that based on a letter sent by the K-P Elementary and Secondary Education Department (K-PESED) in December, the finance department has approved the “creation of 2,772 posts in different categories with the immediate effect for the functionalisation of 484 educational institutions”.

The notification added that these schools had been built through developmental schemes in the tribal districts and their sub-divisions.

The notice said that the most posts had been created in the Orakzai tribal district where some 616 posts have been created for 94 educational institutions. A breakup provided in the notice read that around 87 posts have been created at 29 primary schools — for boys and girls — in the district. A further 456 posts were created at the 57 middle schools for boys and girls in the district.

Another 56 posts have been earmarked for seven high schools and 17 posts at the solitary hostel in the district.

Orakzai was followed by Khyber Tribal District with as many as 546 posts for some 94 educational institutions. This included 122 posts at 41 primary schools, 328 posts at 41 middle schools, and96 posts at 12 high schools.

South Waziristan tribal district had the third most posts with 521 created at 114 educational institutes. This included 225 posts at 75 primary schools, 232 posts at 29 middle schools, 48 posts at six high schools and 16 posts at four hostels.

In Bajaur, 467 posts have been created at 66 educational institutions. This included 35 posts at 12 primary schools, 384 posts at 48 middle schools, and 48 posts at six high schools.

Around 415 posts have been created at 74 educational institutions in Mohmand tribal district. This included 103 posts at 35 primary schools, 248 posts at 31 middle schools, and 64 posts at eight high schools.

In sub-division Wazir of Bannu, the education department created 122 posts at 27 educational institutions, including 33 at 11 primary schools for girls, 64 at eight middle schools for boys and girls, eight at a higher secondary school for girls, 10 at five computer labs, three at a technical workshop and four at a hostel for women teachers.

In subdivision Hassankhel of Peshawar, 85 posts have been created for 15 educational institutions. This includes 21 at seven primary schools for girls and 64 at eight middle schools for boy and girls.

Testing

Meanwhile, the K-PESED issued a notification whereby it stated that all district education offices will conduct interviews of candidates who have been shortlisted for posts of teachers after clearing the tests conducted by the National Testing Service or the and Fair Testing Service (FTS).

The notification directs DEOs to check documents of shortlisted candidates in their respective districts including educational and identification documents. Further, they have been directed to take an undertaking for interviews in their respective districts. For this purpose, the DEOs have been directed to use a check-list to ensure that all required documents are presented by the candidate at the interview.

The issue of using FTS for the process was recently raised in the provincial assembly where opposition members pointed out that the then-adviser to the chief minister on education Ziaullah Bangash had a stake in the testing service while the service proceeded with the test even when its paper had been leaked.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 18^th, 2020.