TRAVELLING to the historic city of Khairpur, located on the left bank of the Indus off the National Highway, it is impossible to miss the mammoth Kot Diji Fort situated on a hill around 100ft high. Built between 1785 and 1795, the massive structure overlooks Kot Diji town.

In the heart of this fort stands the Sojhro Faiz High School — a community-based educational institution housed in a heritage building owned by the Talpur family which ruled the princely state of Khairpur from 1775 to 1947. The school building and grounds have been donated on a long-term lease from the estate of Mir Ali Murad Khan Talpur to a non-governmental organisation, the Indus Resource Centre (IRC), for educational purposes.

Take a look: Education, justice and change

It was around 11am and after travelling for four-and-a-half hours from Hyderabad, I arrived at the school. It was swelteringly hot and I went and stood underneath a tree in front of the principal’s office.

“Salaam,” a man said to me. He was a foreigner, nearly six and a half feet tall and dressed in shalwar kameez. He beckoned me and I followed him to his office.

Stephen David Sheen or Steve, as he is commonly known among the people of the area, has been principal of this school for over eight years. The 32-year-old hails from Wales, Britain. He joined the school in February 2010, when he first travelled to Pakistan on his way to India, but this may be his last month as principal of the school.

“Baba, thaddo pani,” he asks Abbas Ali, the school peon, in fluent Sindhi as he turns to talk to me.

Steve teaches mathematics and physics besides English at the school. He has an MPhil in physics from the University of Leeds.

He says that he arrived in Pakistan as a tourist in 2010, but ended up as a teacher in this tiny town in Sindh where the weather is harsh and the amenities few. He was at a crossroads in his life at that time and felt that he had certain important decisions to make. He wanted to visit several countries and was hoping to make it to India.

“It was more of a necessity to cross through Pakistan to reach India. Pakistan would rather be a very quick cross-through,” he says about the journey that brought him to the country.

Steve embarked on a train journey through Europe, arrived in Turkey and then in Iran. From there, he crossed the border and spent some time in Quetta before landing in Karachi.

During his sojourn in Iran, he came across another tourist, Koen Roovers from the Netherlands, who introduced him to Sadiqa Salahuddin of the IRC, who ran the school in Khairpur. Steve volunteered for a summer camp after arriving in Khairpur in August 2010. “I never pretend to be a qualified English teacher or even a qualified teacher for that matter. I am a native speaker and that goes a long way as your qualification for being an English teacher here in Khairpur. I thought I could at least help students a little bit,” he remarks.

“Tenth class key chau thora kitabon parhan, ma thora busy aayan,” he tells Ali, the peon, wanting to continue our chat. He explains that Ali has helped him learn Sindhi since his first day at the school.

Steve is deeply involved with students, teachers, support staff and the community and that is why the school is commonly referred to as “angrez ka school (Englishman’s school)” among the rural population. As many as 500 students from underprivileged backgrounds are enrolled at the school.

In its initial years, the school was funded and managed under the IRC’s Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund schools project. The IRC-Sojhro Faiz High School is not a one-village school and students from several towns and villages in the surrounding area attend it.

His students say they enjoy Steve’s lectures which are interspersed with Sindhi and Urdu words besides those in his mother tongue. What’s more, he doesn’t rely on theory alone but “comes up with some practical work so we can develop a clear concept of the subject”, says Zeeshan Khaskheli, a student.

However, Steve’s visa will expire on May 16, by which date he has to leave the country. Up until a few days ago, the thought of him leaving Kot Diji had seemed absurd. Ms Salahuddin says that Steve’s visa would be extended every year on IRC’s application.

They were hoping for the same this year when she sent in the application for processing in February this year. But that has not happened so far this year, and the IRC has been given no explanation for the delay.

Save a few close friends and senior teachers, Steve says he hasn’t yet discussed with anyone what now seems inevitable. He will now take a month-long holiday to visit his family in Wales.

“It might turn out that I return to the UK for a month or two until a new visa is approved, but I won’t be able to relax or enjoy a holiday until my return to Kot Diji is confirmed,” he adds.

Published in Dawn, May 13th, 2018