Panic among parents of school going clildren
Parents reluctant to send their children to schools
Rawalpindi, Oct 16: Parents, apprehensive over the uncertain law and order
situation, are reluctant to send their children to schools because of the fresh
spate of terror acts in Rawalpindi and Lahore. The mid-term
examinations are in progress in many educational institutions, but most parents
are not sending their children to schools. Sources in various schools of
the city informed that school managements are considering closing down
academic institutions for some days because of the prevailing situation. Both
parents and the school managements are concerned over the new approach of
terrorists of holding people hostages. Principal of an
English medium school, told said that a several students have been absent
for last 3 to 4 days. According to her, most parents were demanding the closure
of the school despite the ongoing mid-term examinations. She said that students
keep on discussing terror incidents even in classrooms, which is not good for
them. "Students are frequently asked to avoid this topic in school but they can
hardly get their innocent minds off it." Raja Kamran Abbasi said that he
would not send his child to school due to the prevailing law and order situation
in the city. "How can I send my child to school in these circumstances?" he
said. Zara Hussain, a mother, said news of the GHQ attack was quite
perturbing for her, as at that time her two sons and a daughter were in their
schools located in the cantonment. Shahzeb Irfan, a class 5 student, said
that his parents have strictly ordered him to prepare for the mid-term
examinations at home. "I want to attend school, but my parents are not allowing
me because of the law and order situation," he said. Thursday was a another shocking day for the entire nation, particularly
for parents and families of school-going children of the provincial metropolis,
as terror revisited Lahore at three different places simultaneously.
The first terrorist strike which occurred at the Federal Investigation
Agency (FIA) Building was the most shocking because of the buildingís proximity
to different private schools and business centres. An emergent meeting of
the management of St Anthony High School and Sacred Heart School Cathedral High
School, Lawrence Road situated near the FIA building , was also held in the
afternoon which decided that the institutes would remain closed on Friday
(today) and Saturday (tomorrow), reopening on Monday. There was no
student at Anthony High School at the time of terroristsí attack on FIA building
as no paper was scheduled for Thursday in connection with the schoolís on going
mid-year exams while regular classes were being held at Sacred Heart School
Cathedral High School. The exchange of fire between terrorists and the
personnel of law enforcement agencies created panic among the schoolchildren who
had witnessed a massive suicide attack right in front of their school last
year. On March 11, 2008, a massive suicide car bomb had ripped through
the provincial headquarters of the FIA in which dozens of people were killed
besides serious damage to scores of homes and schools in the neighborhood.
It is pertinent to mention that various private schools, especially
missionary schools, have been operating on or near The Mall which also connects
FIA building near Regal Chowk. The other two places including Police
Training Centre, Manawan and Elite Police Training Centre, Baidian Road where
terrorists attacked on Thursday are, however, far away from the city centre.
Nonetheless, the terror strikes created panic and unrest among people of
the provincial metropolis while the innocent school going children from across
the city were terrified and their parents and families were greatly disturbed.
Soon after the unfortunate incident, people thronged schools to collect
their wards. Extraordinary rush of people was witnessed on various roads while
traffic also remained choked for quite some time. The traffic on The
Mall was also suspended for quite some time to ensure proper rescue
activities. Principal St Anthonyís High School,
Lawrence Road, Mr Noel Cyprian confirmed that the institutes would reopen on
Monday. He said, on Thursday, St Anthony High School was closed owing to
mid-year exam as no paper was scheduled for Thursday. However, Sacred Heart
Cathedral High School Lawrence Road was open. When contacted, DPI (Secondary
Education) Mian Abdul said the government sector schools would remain open on
Friday (today) as per routine.
Sacred Heart School remained one of the worst victims of the second
attack on the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) building, as the
school is right in front of the building. At the time of the
attack, almost 500 students were present in the school. Children
started crying after hearing the cross-firing between terrorists and
security personnel. A schoolteacher Perveen said that the
teachers gathered all students in the playground as a safety measure. Teachers
called the parents and the van drivers to immediately pick the students
from the school. After receiving reports of multiple attacks in the
city, administrations of the Lahore University of Management Sciences
(LUMS), Lahore School of Economics (LSE), Beaconhouse National
University (BNU), Kinnaird College, King Edward Medical University
(KEMU), Fatima Jinnah Medical College, Forman Christian College
University, Aitchison College, Government College University and LACAS
beefed up security at the entrance of the campuses.
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Idara Taleem-o-Aagahi project for teachers
Islamabad: Social dialogues and a survey being carried out by Idara
Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA) with an aim to get educators, faculty, students and
teachers engaged with the newly finalised National Professional Standards for
Teachers by the Ministry of Education have attained tremendous
success. ITA has been carrying out these activities in consultation with
teachers' training institutions nationwide with the consultation of the MoE and
UNESCO through USAID support. Meanwhile, WTD-2009 dialogue was held here
at the Federal College of Education that was attended by 50 participants.
Speaking on the occasion, Director Colleges Prof. Talat Khursheed said that
these standards are not new to the institution, as the college was a partner
organization during their finalisation. The ITA in collaboration with Dubai
Cares, OXFAM and Pakistan Coalition for Education and many partner institutions
will hold dialogues in many districts. The news
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Governor's Scholarship for students
Lahore: Punjab Governor Salmaan Taseer announced Governor's Scholarship
for five deserving and talented students from the Lawrence College,
Ghora Gali, Murree. Presiding
over the 149th Founders' Day celebrations at the college, Taseer said
the institution was one of the best in Pakistan and the government
wanted to promote the standard of this tremendous college as one of the
world's best organisations. He said the college had produced thousands
of professionals. He said, "It is our moral and national responsibility
to support such students who are talented, but cannot continue their
studies due to financial problems." The governor directed the college
administration to select the five students on merit. He also praised
former Punjab governor Lt General (r) Khalid Maqbool for playing his
role for the betterment of the college. Daily times
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Survey rejects US aid bill
Lahore: The Punjab University (PU) chapter of Islami Jamiat-e-Talaba (IJT)
conducted a survey regarding Kerry-Lugar Bill, which was opposed by 91 per cent
students of the varsity. The results showed only 5 per cent of the students
believed that the Kerry-Lugar Bill was in the interest of the country while 4
per cent neither opposed nor supported the bill. Talking about the survey, IJT
PU Nazim Qaiser Sharif said the survey had proved that Pakistani students were
against the US interference in country, said a press release on Thursday. He
further said the survey was a part of IJT's Students Awareness Campaign. The news
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