Jammu & Kashmir

Restricted development: In Mirpur village, schoolgirls without teachers

Rights activist accuses AJK’s state department of negligence.

Our Correspondent June 10, 2012

MIRPUR: Over the past few years, none of the students of a government girls’ high school in Palahel Rajgan village, Kotli District, have been able to pass their matric exams. Are the girls not studying hard enough or is there a problem with the schooling? Human rights activist Rashed Akram blames the latter.

“Since its 30 years of existence, the school has lacked teaching staff and basic facilities,” said Akram. He said that for the past few years the school has had no teachers for biology and mathematics, which is why the girls have been repeatedly failing their exams. “This is proof of negligence and blatant mismanagement of the Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) State Education Department,” he added.

Akram, who also hosts a local radio show, told The Express Tribune that the school has been hiring visiting male teachers for mathematics and making them teach science subjects to the girls. He said that in the conservative setup of the villages, a male teacher teaching girl students is considered “awkward and uncomfortable”.

However, he said that despite repeatedly demanding the Kotli district education officer of girls’ schools to induct science teachers in the school, but to no avail.

Raja Shabir, whose daughter studies in the government school, said, “In this modern age of science and technology, it is shameful for a school to not having a science teacher.” He demanded that immediate induction of required teachers in the school against all vacant posts to ensure quality education to the local children.

Government Girls’ High School in Palahel Rajgan village falls under the electoral constituency of the acting Prime Minister of AJK, Chaudhry Muhammad Yasin, who is a senior minister of Charhoi sub-division, Mirpur Division.

Despite repeated attempts, neither the minister nor the district education authorities were available to comment.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 10^th, 2012.