KARACHI: The Sindh High Court has directed the provincial government to take measures on a war-footing basis to bring around four million out-of-school children into the government-run education system.
The SHC also ordered the inspection of desks procured for government schools in order to determine whether the furniture was according to specifications provided in the tender or otherwise.
It further called for a comprehensive report from the education department regarding the availability of furniture and desks in government-run schools across the province at next hearing.
Education Secretary Dr Shireen Mustafa assured the court that they would take every effort to bring those children to schools by enhancing the capacity of existing educational institutions and repairing schools damaged in recent floods as well as to hand over the schools to reputable NGOs through the Sindh Education Foundation.
The single-judge bench of SHC, headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar, issued these directives while hearing a lawsuit filed last year against the award of a contract to procure furniture/desks for government schools.
The bench in its order said, “Besides, it has come on record that 04 million students are out of schools; 5.8 million students are studying in public sector under the education department including SEF, whereas, 04 million kids are studying in private schools meaning thereby that presently 08 million students/kids are out of Sindh government education system”.
Under the Constitution and relevant law, it was the primary duty of the Sindh government to bring quality education into its system, so that these eight million kids/students opted to join government schools, it added.
The bench also observed that since the situation was very alarming, authorities must initiate all efforts on a war-footing basis by taking all modes permissible under the law to ensure that such nuisance of illiteracy was removed and every kid could easily get education.
The education secretary assured the bench that all possible efforts would be made to bring such children to schools and also undertook that a consolidated report with regard to availability and non-availability of furniture in government schools will also be submitted at next hearing.
About the issue of desks, the plaintiff contended that he was not awarded a contract for 16,000 desks in Mirpurkhas region and the contractor, who provided 2,400 desks should be examined by the committee to determine whether such desks were as per specifications provided in tender or not.
He further submitted that the contractor should submit a categorical statement along with proof showing the capacity to provide 16,000 desks within two months as stipulated in contract and if such desks were of the same quality as specified in the contract, he will not resist further and the contractor, if capable, may provide the same, else delinquent must be fixed for any liability.
The education secretary did not oppose the inspection of desks and the bench directed the director-schools Mirpurkhas region, the contractor and other officials as well as a judicial magistrate, to be nominated by the district judge Umerkot, to inspect Umerkot district where the majority of desks in question had been supplied and examine the quality of furniture which was required to be supplied by the contractor preferably within 15 days.
Adjourning the hearing till Jan 10, it asked the secretary-school education to ensure that the inspection was carried out by the committee and that this exercise must not be delayed and be carried out within the stipulated period even if any party was avoiding inspection of the relevant schools.
Acknowledgement: Published in Daily Dawn on December 21, 2023