Up to 51 school staff members penalised

MARDAN: Up to 51 teaching and non-teaching staff at different primary schools in Mardan district have been suspended for allegedly remaining absent from duties.

The order was issued in a notification by District Education Officer (Male) Dr Mohammad Idrees. It was stated in the notification that the Education Monitoring Authority of different areas of the Mardan district submitted a report of different government primary schools for the month of October.

The report stated that 51 teaching and the non-teaching staff of different government primary schools in the district remained absent from duties.

They included five primary school head teachers, 22 primary schoolteachers, five senior primary schoolteachers, nine watchmen, four naib qasid, five junior clerks and one sweeper of different primary schools. It was added that the DEO Male under E&D rules 2011 and punished the staff. Talking to the News Hafiz Zubair Ahmed, provincial spokesman for Government Schools Officer Association, condemned the action and said the EDO misused his powers and did not follow the rules. He claimed that some staff was physically present at school but had not signed the attendance registers while some teachers were on leaves. Hafiz Zubair Ahmed demanded withdrawal the notification.