Provision of quality education government's top priority: minister

Punjab Schools Education Minister Murad Raas has said that provision of quality education to the students is priority agenda of the government because education is the key to success in the 21 century. He said that Punjab government will made the province a hub of quality education so that the students could be transformed as leaders of tomorrow. He stated this while presiding over a meeting at Quaid-e-Azam Academy for Educational Development here on Thursday.
Secretary School Imran Sikandar Baloch, DG QAED Iqbal Hussain, high officials of the SED and parents of students enrolled in private schools attended the meeting. The minister said that educational problems of the people will be solved in collaboration with stakeholders so that parents may not be burdened about the education of their children. No compromise will be made on the provision of quality education, he added.
He said that regulatory authority will be established to maintain effective check and balance on private schools in the province. He also assured to the parents that complaints cell will be setup to solve their complaints and added that he will personally monitor their performance. Everything will be done on merit and no one will be above the law, he added.
Parents of the students apprised the meeting about various issues being faced by the students in private schools that fail to pay their dues in time including refusing to sit in exams, locking in libraries, insistent fee demand and resultant health issues of the students.
They also stressed the need for determining fee of summer vacations and third party audit of private schools. They also proposed to setup parents' body in the government and private schools. The minister assured to remove the reservations of the parents and observed that mechanism would have to be devised about opening of private schools and every one will not have the permission of start a school.
He said that he will also meet with private schools' owners and added that solid steps will be taken to improve the situation.
He said that private sector plays an important role in the promotion of education and added that quality education is the right of every child. Prompt measures required to get rid of illiteracy and to ensure hundred percent enrollment in schools so that positive change could be introduced in the province, concluded the minister.