Government Kohinoor Girls High School in Rawalpindi, run under the supervision of the Punjab Education Department, lacks all basic facilities in an era of scientific and technological advancement, leaving educators and school children, including boys, at the mercy of scorching heat.
The school's second shift classrooms still lack basic necessities like proper roofing, electricity, fans, and clean drinking water.
The school is home to around 2,000 students and of these, about 500 boys and girls attend the second shift - a shift now held in a makeshift structure covered with iron and tin sheets.
By 9am, harsh sunlight begins to pour into all the classrooms. With no doors, tin roofs, and no ventilation, the classrooms turn into virtual ovens. Reports of children suffering from nosebleeds due to the intense heat have become a daily occurrence.
Due to a 'severe financial crisis', the Education Department has declined to provide any funding for improvements. Distressed parents had submitted protest letters to PML-N MNA Malik Abrar, who promised to construct proper classrooms. However, since the land is privately owned, the commitment could not be fulfilled.
Teachers have resorted to holding classes under trees. The school operates in two shifts — the morning shift in a larger building, and the second shift (with 500 students) in an adjacent structure. About a month and a half ago, the Education Department abruptly discontinued second shifts in all schools across the district. But due to the number of students, Kohinoor Girls High School's second shift was retained, albeit in appalling conditions.
The tin-roofed structure offers no insulation from the scorching sun. By 10am, the sun beams directly into the classrooms, making even the blackboards, teacher's chairs, and students' benches unbearably hot. The heat is so intense that more than 200 out of 500 students have stopped attending school.
Teachers, who raise these issues, are reportedly issued warnings. Parents have submitted multiple complaints and reminders to the Department of Education, Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Hassan Waqar Cheema, the Assistant Commissioner, and the Chief Minister's Complaint Cell - but no action has been taken. In response, parents and local traders have formed an action committee.
Parents - including Mazhar Abbas, Musarrat Parveen, Mubeen Kausar, Muhammad Kaleem, and Saeed Akhtar - told The Express Tribune that they are exhausted by the lack of response from authorities. The only answer they now receive is, "Send your children to another school." As a result, many have already done so or withdrawn their children from education altogether.
They demand that students be immediately relocated from the dangerous tin-roofed structure to the old, solid, yet currently unused school building nearby. Until new classrooms are constructed, classes should be held in that safer facility. Parents have also requested urgent installation of fans and provision of cold drinking water.
The spokesperson for the Rawalpindi DEA says summer vacations are about to begin and that a permanent solution will be considered after the holidays.
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