Giveaways: Free books and bags for students next year

The campaign will leave children enthused about the academic year ahead: minister

LAHORE: The Punjab Education Department will distribute free textbooks and school bags among 10 million students at public schools in the province in the next academic year, Minister for Education and Sports Rana Mashhood Ahmed Khan said while presiding over a meeting on Thursday.

The Punjab Text Books Board will oversee the distribution of school bags and books, he said.

“The campaign is reflective of the chief minister’s vision for education reform and reducing financial burden on parents.” He said he hoped that the initiative would help encourage a culture of reading books among students.

A committee has been constituted to implement the project. Khan said the campaign would kick off in the next academic year. “The campaign will leave children enthused about the academic year ahead of them.”

Khan said earlier distribution of free text books had played an important role in enhancing the literacy rate of Punjab.

The minister urged officials to launch Teen Times – a monthly magazine for students – at the earliest.

He said the magazine would be distributed in all schools and would help polish creative skills of students who will be taken on board as correspondents for the publication.

PTB Chairman Nawazish Ali, Schools Special Secretary Ahmed Ali Kamboh and Dr Farukh Naveed among others were present on the occasion.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 18^th,  2015.