Sir: According to a media report, students of the public sector colleges in Mardan region could not clinch top positions in the intermediate examination 2016 conducted by the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Mardan, despite the provincial government’s tall claims about bringing change in the education sector. Majority of parents of the students studying at state-run colleges are not satisfied with the performance of these colleges. It merits a mention that only one female student of a government college has topped the Arts Group in the region. It is to be added that none of the students of government colleges has succeeded to gain position in the list of top 20 students in pre-medical and pre-engineering groups. The Provincial Minister of Education claims that government has improved the standard of education at government-run colleges by imposing emergency in the education sector. According to the result of Mardan Board, the students of government colleges showed poor performance like that of Secondary School Certificate exam results. This should be a matter of serious concern for the Provincial Education Minister who incidentally hails from Mardan district. In view of the above, there is a strong need for re-visiting the educational policy of the provincial government, especially in respect of government colleges to improve their performance. KHAN FARAZ Peshawar