School buildings must be handed over to the education department: BHC
Education Desk :
QUETTA: The Balochistan High Court (BHC) directed the provincial government to hand over all buildings constructed for the purpose of schools to the education department. A division bench of the BHC comprising Mr. Justice Kamran Khan Malakhail and Mr. Justice Abdullah Baloch passed this order on a petition. Gul Khan, a resident of district Ziarat Sanjavi had filed a petition regarding the abandoned/ occupied buildings of the education department in the district.
Sher Khan Bazai, the Secretary Secondary Education Department pointed out during the court proceedings that unfortunately due to ill planning and without the concurrence of the department, buildings constructed on the pretext of schools have never been handed over to the department.
BHC orders the chief secretary to convene a meeting
The court directed the Chief Secretary Balochistan to convene a meeting with the secretary education, secretary home, and tribal affairs department and secretary service and general administration department (S&GAD) to evolve a mechanism to conduct a comprehensive survey in the province. The concerned deputy commissioners should be directed to identify all buildings constructed for the purpose of schools and hand over them to the education department, the bench ordered.
The Advocate General Balochistan, Arbab Tahir Advocate, and secretary education, Sher Khan Bazai when confronted with the situation sought time from the court to evolve a strategy to identify buildings in the province.
Buildings constructed on the basis of political affiliations
In Balochistan, a large number of buildings have been constructed on the pretexts of schools. Neither buildings handed over to the education department nor they have been made functional. On political grounds and affiliations, the buildings were included in the public sector development program in the province. The number of such abandoned and occupied buildings is in thousands across the province, an officer of the education department who declined to be named told the daily Quetta Voice.
The court adjourned the case till October 13th, 2020.
