MANSEHRA: Local body representatives and tribesmen in Torghar on Monday urged the government to upgrade middle schools for girls to the secondary level to improve educational opportunities for local girls.

“We have only six middle schools for girls across the former tribal belt, all of which lack adequate facilities and suffer from a shortage of teachers and other staff,” village council chairman in Bimbal Gul Mohammad Khan told reporters.

Residents led by Mr Khan highlighted that female literacy in the district remains alarmingly low at below 12 per cent. “Our district lacks educational infrastructure for females, and there isn’t even a college for boys,” Mr Khan said.

He said only a high school in the district offers girls the opportunity to study up to the

A resident, Naseem Nawaz, noted that Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ali Amin Gandapur recently announced a monthly stipend for female students in certain districts of the province, including Torghar.

“If local girls cannot attend schools due to the lack of proper educational infrastructure, how can this stipend attract out-of-school girls to come and receive an education” he said.

Mr Nawaz revealed that government middle schools for girls in Sarbago Hassanzai, Karward, Bimbal, Morta, Dor Mera, and Tilli Sydain face acute shortages of teachers and other staff, with their buildings in highly dilapidated conditions.

“The boundary wall of the government primary school in Sarbago Hassanzai collapsed around three years ago and hasn’t been rebuilt since,” he added.

When approached, an education department official said that they moved the summary for the appointments of female teachers in the district.

“As the funds are allocated by the government the problems at girls’ schools would be addressed,” he said.

Meanwhile, residents of Darband on Monday urged the district administration to take punitive action against nanbais who have reduced the weight of bread from 150 grams to 100 grams.

A group of locals led by Mohammad Faisal Khan told reporters that the district price review and control committee led by the deputy commissioner had fixed the price of a 150-gram bread at Rs20. However, nanbais have reduced its weight to 100 grams while still charging the same price.

Mr Khan said that the deputy commissioner should take notice of the food department’s negligence as profiteers are exploiting the public.

Published in Dawn, November 19th, 2024