LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi has banned students from taking the responsibility of cleaning schools in Punjab and asked the secretary of the School Education Department to issue a notification for strict compliance.
He also promised to hold relevant principals and principals responsible for sanitation problems in schools where such complaints would arise.
CM conducted a comprehensive inspection at Government Secondary School Model High School Model Town today.
The conditions observed were extremely alarming; Lack of furniture in some classrooms forced students to study on bare floors. The toilets were dirty and had no water, and the electric water coolers were faulty. Broken furniture, damaged whiteboards, dilapidated doors, and windows without glass and grills further added to the dreary state of the classrooms.
Similarly, there was only one sweeper for the student population of 750. In addition, there were problems such as sports activities being suspended, paint peeling and spider webs forming in the classrooms, inadequate lighting and some fans not working. Both computer and science laboratories were found to be dysfunctional and in poor condition respectively.
The CM went to each classroom and interacted with the students to understand their concerns. Students expressed their complaints about issues such as lack of clean drinking water, insufficient water in toilets, broken furniture and damaged blackboards. They also mentioned issues such as dim lighting, fans not working, lack of sports activities, and having to buy textbooks from the market.
The Prime Minister also interacted with the nursery class children and expressed his determination to provide them with necessary educational opportunities and directed them to provide them quickly.
The CM expressed his displeasure on witnessing the deplorable conditions and called on Education Minister Mansoor Qadir, schools secretary, C&W secretary and CEO district education officer to the school to rectify these problems.
Responding to students’ concerns, the CM issued instructions to provide free masks to students in schools in Lahore and other smog-affected areas.
He ordered toilets to be renovated and water coolers to be repaired to ensure clean water supply. To overcome the financial burden on students, the CM mandated refund of money spent on textbooks purchased from the market.
Adopting a holistic approach, the CM promised to revive sports activities with Provincial Advisor Wahab Riaz scheduled to personally participate in a cricket match with the students. Plans were implemented to procure new furniture and blackboards, to immediately paint windows, doors and classrooms, and to establish a canteen for students. He also ordered the provision of computers to the IT laboratory.
Moreover, the Shahdara flyover project is on the verge of completion with an impressive 95% of the work already done.
In this context, the CM paid an early morning visit to inspect the project, focusing specifically on the newly constructed flyover from Lahore to Gujranwala district. He inspected the final touches implemented in the project and directed DG PHA to plant trees and landscaping on both sides of the project.
The CM emphasized on beautifying the entry point with flowering plants and trees. PHA should spare no effort to beautify Shahdara Chowk, Lahore’s premier gateway.
Expressing satisfaction with the progress, the CM announced that Shahdara flyovers will be opened for traffic by the middle of this month to facilitate the daily movement of over 300,000 vehicles. This will solve persistent traffic problems on the city’s main entry and exit roads, the official said.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023
news source (www.brecorder.com)
