The Punjab government will open separate schools for the transgender community in selected cities of the province and the first of its kind will be established in Multan very soon. Punjab Minister for School Education Dr Murad Raas made this announcement while addressing a ceremony held regarding Insaf Afternoon School Programme (IASP) here at a local hotel on Tuesday. Senior officials of the Education Department, Chief Executive Officers of Education Authorities and Danish Schools were also present. The minister said that the government decided not to enroll the transgenders in regular schools because of some reservations about the behaviour of other students. He added that attitude of students of regular schools could be insulting towards the transgender community; that was why separate schools would be established for them. He said it was unfortunate that no government except for the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, thought about the welfare and provision of education and jobs to this community. Appreciating the efforts of the education chief executive officers (CEOs) and the teachers for successful enrollment drives across the province, the minister hoped that a large number of the out-of-school children would be admitted to schools. He said that selected schools under the IASP would be upgraded according to the needs before starting classes. He said the registration of such schools was in progress and would be completed till July 15. To a question, he said that only a few private schools were open for summer classes to cover the syllabus, adding that from August 1, all government institutions would also be reopened. He urged the parents and school heads to ensure implementation of the standard operating procedures (SOPs) about coronavirus in schools.