CHITRAL: The teacher absenteeism and classroom occupation have marred the performance of the government girls’ schools in Chitral district.

Ironically, the district education officer, too, lives on the premises of a school.

An official in the know told Dawn that teachers of different schools in the district had absented themselves from duty for one to three years in connivance with the relevant education department officials.

Of late, the residents of Terich valley sent a written complaint to the district administration of the continuous absence of teachers from duty at the government girls’ primary schools of Lone Koh Lusht and Pakhturi for one and a half years and from the Lolemi school for one year.

Also, parents of the students enrolled in Government Girls High School Zondrangram area of Terich formally complained to the administration about the absence of three teachers from duty for one year.

The residents of Terich warned they would demonstrate outside the district education offices if the government didn’t ensure the presence of teachers on duty.

There are also complaints about the overstaffing at middle schools in Seen Lusht, Mughlandeh, Jughoor and Denin areas.

A relevant official told Dawn that each of those schools had eight sanctioned posts of teachers but more than 12 teachers, including blue-eyed, were posted there.

He said the Government Girls Middle School Jughoor had 15 teachers against the sanctioned teacher posts of eight and Denin and Mughlandeh middle schools 14 against the sanctioned seven posts. The official said schools in far-flung villages of the district faced shortage of teachers.

He insisted many women teachers posted to such schools performed duty in schools located close to their houses though such adjustment, also called detailment, had long been banned.

The official said a senior subject teacher posted to the Government Girls Middle School Saht had been doing duty in Denin area of Chitral town for three years, while another teacher posted to the Government Girls Middle School Rayeen was allowed to work in Koghuzi before she was transferred to a Kuju school located near her house.

An official of the independent monitoring unit also confirmed teacher absenteeism and classroom occupation in many of Chitral government schools.

He said those irregularities had repeatedly been reported to the education department, but to no avail.

When contacted, district education officer (female) Zuhra Jalal acknowledged she lived in a room of the Government Girls High School Muldeh but insisted that wasn’t a classroom.

She also confirmed assistant education officer Zubaida had occupied a primary school’s room for four years before vacating it few months ago.

The DEO said many absentee teachers were transferred to far-away schools but they got relief against transfer orders from the court of law.

She said the detailment of teachers to other schools had been done where the need arose and that the education director knew about it.

Published in Dawn, August 4th, 2016