SCHOOL IN TROUBLE: More than 1,500 students are enrolled in the Government Boys Higher Secondary School, Gharo. However, the enrolment rate is feared to drop soon due to some longstanding issues that the school has been facing, including the lack of potable water and the absence of lavatories and a compound wall. Parents are concerned about these missing facilities and are reluctant to allow their wards to attend school. Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are working in Thatta district to promote education. The local authorities should either earmark sufficient funds for the provision of required facilities through the Education Works Department, or allow collaboration with some NGO to resolve such issues.

M Haroon Lohar
Principal, GBHSS
Gharo

A LITERARY FIGURE: The demise of literary figure Mubarak Qazi, who was dedicated to promoting Balochi literature and was the author of several Balochi poetry books, has saddened many in Balochistan. Qazi was born on Dec 24 in 1956 and got his early education in Pasni, and went on to earn a master’s degree in International Relations. But it was in the domain of literature that he made his mark. His death is a serious blow to the development of Balochi literature.

Shahmeer Masood
Turbat

DOCUMENT ATTESTATION: In the wake of the recent downturn in national economy owing to political polarisation, a lot of people are moving abroad in search of greener pastures. As a result, there has been a rush of applications for attestation of educational credentials at the Higher Education Commission (HEC). This has overwhelmed the system to the extent that the process that used to take 2-3 days is now consuming at least 4-8 weeks. Sadly, there has been no effort on HEC’s part to improve the situation. It is as if the authorities have instructed HEC to deliberately slow down the process.

Name withheld on request
Karachi

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2023