Daily Times

KARACHI: Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said on Monday that Almighty Allah had bestowed differently-abled children with special talents. “The society should ensure that they are trained properly and affectionately.

“They need our love and special care,” he said, while speaking at the Zainab Rehabilitation Centre (ZRC) for Special Children at Jamshed Road on Monday.

He said he had taken up special measures for education of differently-abled children. “I have visited most of the schools and institutions working for rehabilitation of differently-abled children and I believe the people involved in this [rehabilitation] work are great human beings,” he said.

The chief minister said that education of differently-abled children was quite expensive in the private sector but some philanthropists had started pursuing the task as well. “This is your greatness that you are running this institution [ZRC] free of cost,” he said, addressing Haji Masood Parekh and others who founded ZRC and are operating it free of cost. “I have activated schools working under the administration of Special Education Department, government of Sindh and now they are also contributing in this work.”

The CM also met special Olympian Arish Ahmed who represented Pakistan in the Special Olympics held in Brunei. He congratulated and hugged Arish for becoming a special Olympian and said he [Arish] had made Pakistan, and particularly Sindh province, proud of your achievements.

Arish showed all the gold medals he had won to the chief minister. The chief minister encouraged him and other children at ZRC to pursue their dreams.

Later, Muard Ali Shah visited different classes and spent some time with the children and kept asking them questions and listening to them. “I have enjoyed your company, you are our angels,” he said, addressing the children before leaving the premises.

Published in Daily Times, May 8^th 2018.