Shahbaz stresses quality education

LAHORE
Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif presided over a meeting here Tuesday which decided to take immediate and comprehensive measures for the promotion of quality education in schools and training of teachers on modern lines.
Speaking on the occasion, Shahbaz Sharif said that quality education depended on modern training of teachers. He said that in order to increase enrolment in schools, not only standard of education would have to be improved but due attention would also have to be paid to teachers’ training. He directed that all possible measures should be taken under Schools Support Programme for improving standard of education and Punjab Education Foundation should take immediate measures for promotion of quality education.
The chief minister said that teachers’ training institutions should be run on modern lines as it was essential for promotion of quality education. He said that promotion of education was of vital importance for elimination of ignorance and achievement of the targets of development. He directed that a comprehensive model be evolved for training of teachers on modern lines and that educational activities in the totally dilapidated buildings of schools be stopped immediately and these activities should be started in new buildings. He said that the repair and construction work of total and partially dilapidated buildings should be completed within stipulated period.
He said that a huge sum of Rs8.5 billion had been allocated in the current budget for the construction and repair of buildings and proper and transparent utilisation of funds should be ensured at any cost. He said that third-party audit of repair and construction work of school buildings should also be conducted. The chief minister ordered to immediately stop educational activities in such school buildings as had been declared totally dangerous due to recent earthquake and said that Provincial Minister for Education should pay personal visit to such buildings and submit a report. He said that provision of missing facilities in schools should also be completed at the earliest. He said that a sum of Rs5 billion had been allocated in the current fiscal year for providing missing facilities in schools. Shahbaz Sharif expressed displeasure over the delay in the installation of solar panels in schools and said that there was no justification for this delay. He said that the work should be carried out speedily in this regard and a report be submitted within three months. He directed that strict implementation of the decisions should be ensured as he wanted results regarding promotion of education. He said that institutional framework was necessary for speedy implementation of decisions.
He directed Punjab Information Technology Board Chairman to devise a plan for extending the pilot project of smart school system in Lahore to the schools of southern and northern Punjab. He appreciated the performance of a student Arosha who had developed the software of smart school system. Secretary Schools Education gave a briefing to the meeting on promotion of quality education, training of teachers, construction and repair of dilapidated school buildings and other issues.
Rana Sanaullah meets Shahbaz: Provincial Minister for Law Rana Sanaullah called on Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Tuesday. According to a handout, law and order in the province and the measures taken for protection of life and property of the people during the third phase of local government elections were discussed in the meeting. The chief minister said that the Punjab government had taken effective steps for the peaceful conduct of local government elections in the first and second phase and foolproof security arrangements should also be made for maintaining law and order in the third phase of local government polls. He said that comprehensive measures taken under National Action Plan for the elimination of terrorism and sectarianism were yielding positive results. He said that the Punjab government had made necessary amendments to the laws and made punishments more stringent.
He said that people had expressed full confidence in the leadership of Pakistan Muslim League-N in local government elections and authenticated the results of general elections of 2013. He said that the masses had also rejected in local government elections those elements as were making allegations of so-called rigging in general elections. He said that the politics of honesty, hard work and transparency had won in local government elections. He said that government would come up to the expectations of the masses.