SC orders KP govt to build schools in quake-hit areas in six months

ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) to ensure completion of reconstruction of schools in quake-hit areas within six months with the warning that if the task is not accomplished, contempt proceedings will be initiated for non-compliance.

A three-member bench of the apex court headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed heard a suo motu case on non-construction of schools in the earthquake-hit districts of the province. The court summoned in-person the chairman, Earthquake Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority (ERRA), on the next date of hearing. The court directed the provincial government to submit a comprehensive report after six months regarding completion of reconstruction work of schools and warned that if its order is not implemented in letter and spirit, contempt proceedings may be initiated for non-compliance with its order.

During the hearing, the KP government representative informed the court that in pursuance of the court order, 70 per cent construction work has been completed in the quake-hit areas of the province, adding that some 244 schools have been reconstructed. The official informed the court that the court had given a deadline of August this year for reconstruction of affected schools. However, the work on construction in Northern Areas remained closed due to winter.

Justice Ijazul Ahsen asked the official to give a final deadline for reconstructing the schools and when these schools will be functional. The KP government counsel replied that two-month time after March 2022 be given in this regard. The court accepted the KP government request and adjourned the hearing for six months with the direction that the ERRA chairman should appear in-person on the next date of hearing.