Daily Times

PESHAWAR: Reconstruction and rehabilitation process of 80 per cent of the 183 schools destroyed by militants in Khyber Agency has been completed, an Education department official said on Monday.

Khyber Agency Education Officer Abdur Rashid informed Daily Times that the terrorists had destroyed 183 schools in the agency, including 153 schools in Bara tehsil alone. These schools included 94 schools that were completely raised to the ground.

He said that government had completed construction work on 80 per cent schools but education department of the agency was yet to take charge of the school and let them open for learning. “However, alternate places have been managed to keep the education activities alive in the area and let students undertake their learning activities,” Abdur Rashid added.

He revealed that the tribesmen have to wait two or more years to send their children to the government schools since they are at beginning of the first phase of rehabilitation. “The shift in government’s education policy, new scheme of construction involved that there will be six-rooms in the Primary schools instead of two and more facilitation for Middle and High schools,” he added.

Sher Rehman a resident of Khyber Agency told this scribe that the learning environment has revisited the agency and that they remained resolute to counter terrorism thorough educating their youth.

Government school teacher Khan Afridi in Bara tehsil described that makeshift schools in tents have been established in the agency and hopefully students would be shifted soon to government schools in Bara tehsil.

Officials of Agency education office, claimed, that owning to the past seven years period of unrest and detonation of explosives at education institutions has largely reduced the enrollment ratio and literacy rate. Thousands of children were deprived of getting education due to terrorism in the agency but trend was changing for positive.

Parents are eager to get their children enrolled in the government schools which will have good impact on literacy rate and enrollment drive will jump soon. Abdur Rashid said peace and stability and reestablishment writ of law in the Agency has largely which is indispensable for creating learning environment.

Assistant Director P&D in FATA secretariat, Laiq Khan said that more than 1100 government schools have been damaged in the seven agencies of the FATA. He said education directorate was working on emergency basis to complete the construction and rehabilitation of the school with partnership of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government.

“Khyber Agency government schools were worse affected as result of bomb detonation and the directorate on the verge of completion the process of government schools reopening for learning activities,” he added.