Cantt boards all set to seal private schools today

Like other Cantonment boards, Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment boards have chalked out a plan to close down all private educational institutions functioning in residential areas from January 1.

The deadline for the red notices issued to 8,430 private schools in 42 Cantonment boards across the country including in the Rawalpindi district expired on December 31.

A large number of private schools in Cantonment jurisdictions have closed their main entrance gates after announcing winter holidays to avoid being sealed by the officials concerned. There is a serious risk of altercations between the school administrations, students and the board employees over the forced sealing of educational institutions.

Police and area assistant commissioners will accompany the board teams deployed for closing down private schools.

Rawalpindi and Chaklala Cantonment boards have released the data of private schools functioning in residential areas. There are a total of 635 small and large private schools in both the Cantonment boards’ jurisdiction. There are 485 private schools in the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board jurisdiction and 150 private schools in the Chaklala Cantonment Board jurisdiction. The Rawalpindi Cantonment Board has divided the schools into five zones and formed five teams to seal them.

Sources said that the operation will continue throughout the day and board teams will also get help from police if they faced resistance.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has fixed January 5 to take up appeals filed by the Private Schools Action Committee against the forced closure of schools. A three-member bench headed by Justice Ejaz-ul-Haq will hear the appeals.

On the other hand, the Private Schools Joint Action Committee will stage a sit-in in Islamabad on Saturday (today).

Private Schools Joint Action Committee leader Abrar Ahmad Khan said that the Supreme Court will hear their appeals on January 5 and no operation should be carried out till the apex court heard the case.

“The Supreme Court has constituted a bench and issued the cause list. We have also sent this cause list to Cantonment board administrations across the country and have asked them not to take action against private schools till the hearing of appeals,” he said.

All Pakistan Private Schools and Colleges Association leaders Raja Elias and Irfan Muzaffar Kayani said that 3.7 million students were studying in Cantonment schools across the country while 450,000 teachers and 155,000 non-teaching staff were employed there. The forced closure of these schools will affect families, they said, adding if the government provided them with an alternative place, they will vacate buildings on their own.

They said that Cantonment boards should not snatch bags from students and chalks and pens from teachers.

Published in The Express Tribune, January 1^st, 2022.