RAWALPINDI - Scores of female teachers teaching in government-run schools have been facing immense troubles due to their transfers in educational institutions located far from their houses.
They demanded of Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif and Punjab education department (PED) to withdraw their transfer orders and allow them to impart education to students in schools, which are near to their houses.
A female teacher taking to The Nation on Friday on condition of anonymity said that she lived in Lalkurti area. She said she had been teaching at a school at Jhanda Cheechi for the last many years but the government in an unprecedented move had transferred her to a Chakri school, 45-km away from her home. "I am facing problems in going to Chakri daily, as no transport is available for the location where I have been transferred," she added. She said that she approached the authorities concerned to get her transfer orders cancelled; however, no action had been taken so far.
Meanwhile, Punjab Teachers Union has also expressed their resentment over the transfers of teachers in far-flung areas. The teachers in Rawalpindi district have demanded of the education department to review the policy of teachers' rationalisation and ensure merit-based transfers. They said that women teachers were feeling uncomfortable owing to transfers.
They said that it was injustice to send a female teacher to a school which was 70-km away from her house. They claimed that most of female teachers were sent to schools in remote areas where even proper transport facility was not available.
Raja Shahid Mubarik, an active member of PTU, said that it was unjust and illogical to transfer a female teacher to Gujar Khan from Rawalpindi. He said that senior teachers were transferred to fill in a junior teacher's post while junior teachers had been appointed on senior posts. "This speaks volume of nepotism and violation of laws by the government," he alleged.
He said that the rationalisation policy was a step in right direction as intra-tehsil transfers were somehow better then intra-district transfers but discrimination should be avoided. He made it clear that teachers were not against the policy but merit should be followed.
More than 500 teachers have been transferred under the policy without proper planning by the education department, he said, questioning if the decision was correct then why the department withdrew 192 transfer orders immediately.
Some other teachers talking to this scribe said that the department violated its own policy of rationalising teachers' strength. According to the policy, teacher-student ratio at primary level should be 1:40 while at secondary level it should be 3:100. They alleged PED for favouring the teachers having political backing.
This scribe made several attempts to approach Qazi Zahoorul Haq, executive district officer (education), for his comments on the issue but he was not available.