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KU semester exams | Ghost schools
KU semester exams to begin on May 12
Karachi, April 23: Semester examinations at the University of Karachi
will commence on May 12.
This was decided at a meeting of the dean's
committee of the KU here on Tuesday.
Under the decision, all academic
activities will conclude on May 10 and the terminal examinations will be held
along with the make-up tests from May 12. All the faculty members have been
directed to complete their respective courses. However, special arrangements may
be made for extra classes if required.
Urdu University Seminar
The Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology, Maulvi Abdul Haq campus, will
organize a seminar on the "Role of the Arabic Language in Fehmul Quran", on
April 24 at 10am.
The vice-chancellor of the university, Dr Mohammad
Qaiser, will chair the seminar, while Maulana Dr Asad Thanvi and Maulana Hakim
Muhammad Mazhar will be chief guests. APP/PPI
Ghost schools, absenteeism bring education on verge of collapse
Nawabshah: With more than 700 schools lying non-functional,
acute shortage of teaching and non-teaching staff and growing menace of
absenteeism often encouraged and condoned by the education department have
pushed the district's education to the verge of total collapse.
It is learnt that about 700 primary schools had been non-functional in various parts
of the district for years and there were about 2,800 vacant posts of teaching
and non-teaching staff.
A number of surveys have been conducted by Sindh
and district governments over the years and teams have been constituted to
suggest ways and means for reopening the schools but their efforts have always
met failure.
The main reasons behind the failure to reopen the schools
are acute shortage of teaching and non-teaching staff and "visa system", as
commonly referred to by the teachers or on-teaching employees who agree to pay
part of their salary to the concerned section of the department in connivance
with high officials in return for remaining absent from duty. A large number of
teachers who work abroad but get paid here reportedly take advantage of the
so-called visa system.
Another reason is construction of schools
buildings in selected places on political grounds without bothering to carry out
their feasibility. Such schools are being used as Otaqs and godowns by local
influential landlords and the administration never seems bothered about
them.
One can gauge the degree of seriousness shown to education from the
fact that there had been no executive district officer in the district for a
long period and the post was being run on additional charge basis.
About
2,800 posts of teaching and non-teaching staff from BPS-1-19 have been vacant
for years as no recruitment have been made due to political reasons.
Of
247 sanctioned posts of BPS-16 and above in education group of offices, 144 (60
per cent of total) have been vacant for a couple of months. They include one
post of EDO of education, five posts of district officers, three posts of DDO,
three each of ADO male and female, one of administrative office, three posts of
assistant accounts officer, one post of statistic officer, two posts of computer
programmers, two posts of office superintendent, two posts of data processing
officers, one post of physical education teacher, 17 posts of headmasters, six
posts of head-mistresses, six posts of principals, four posts of associate
professors, five posts of assistant professors, 31 posts of subject specialists,
two posts of assistant directors, four posts of trainers, one post of computer
instructor, four posts of special education teachers, one post of vocational
teacher, one post of physiotherapist, three posts of heads of department, 19
posts of instructors, one post of senior instructor and one of librarian.
Similarly, some 155 posts of male and female high school teachers, including 39
in Nawabshah taluka, 59 in Daur, 36 in Sakrand and 21 in Doulatpur talukas are
vacant.
A total of 277 posts of male and female junior school teachers,
including 50 in Nawabshah, 66 in Daur, 93 in Sakrand and 68 in Doulatpur talukas
are vacant and 1,312 posts of male and female primary school teachers, which
include 183 in Nawabshah, 273 in Daur, 559 in Sakrand and 297 in Doulatpur, have
yet to be filled.
About 867 posts from BPS-1 to 4 including watchman,
gardener, driver, lady attendant, cook, shop attendant and others are vacant in
all the four talukas of the district.
The powers to recruit people for
jobs up to BPS-15 were transferred to district government after the introduction
of devolution system but the district government, which was headed by PPP-backed
Awam Dost Panel was allegedly discriminated against under the previous
government.
District Nazim Faryal Talpur is reported to have written
letters to the Sindh government as well as the education department requesting
them to recruit much needed staff and funds but she did not get encouraging
response.
She was not available for comments while sources claimed that
she had taken serious notice of absentee teachers and directed the in-charge EDO
to prepare lists of the teachers who were not performing duty. Dawn
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