ISLAMABAD: The age-old saying: ‘Where there is will, there is a way’, has been proved true on World Teachers Day (held annually on October 5) by the staffers of Government Boys Primary School, Dhoke Roshan Din Rawalpindi, who have constructed a new building by raising a donation of Rs 6 million.
Per details, the Government Boys Primary School had been operating from a mosque since 1980 after it was deprived of its own building which disturbed educational activities on a constant basis.
Talking to Pakistan Today, Government Boys Primary School Principal Khalida Shaheen said that the strength of students enrolled in the school witnessed a considerable increase over the years which irked the mosque administration to the extent that they asked us to shift the school from the mosque premises.
It is pertinent to mention here that Khalida Shaheen had been notified for conferment of ‘Star Education Leaders’ award on the eve of World Teachers Day for promoting the noble cause of education in the country.
The headmistress said that it was a very painful moment for them to be asked by the mosque administration to move the school to another location, as the move would have put a question mark on the future of hundreds of brilliant students who belonged to poor families. Hence, we decided to launch a campaign for the construction of a separate school building which became a reality with the help and support of the public, she added.
Elaborating further on the incident, the headmistress said, “Nothing is impossible in the world, but one must have to do everything with sincerity and good intention.” Though, it was a daunting task, I took the initiative from my own homes by taking a donation of Rs 1.5 million for the school building from my father-in-law, she added.
The headmistress told this scribe that the land that was bought for the purpose was worth Rs 4 million, but the owner namely Khalid Butt, donated the remaining land for the school free of cost. School teachers also donated their salaries generously to ensure that the new building was completed at the earliest. “We succeeded in completing the five-room school along with a principle office with a cost of Rs 2 million, but the total cost of the school amounted to Rs 6 million,” she added.
The new school building was inaugurated by Lahore School Education Department secretary on September 9, 2017. The headmistress said that the secretary was immensely pleased with the untiring efforts of the school staff and termed their services to providing quality education as commendable.
Currently, six teachers are dutifully teaching a total of 171 students, but the uneven teacher-to-student ratio failed to dampen the spirits of the staff. Rather, the unavailability of electricity in the new school building had been a cause of concern for the principal, students and staff.
“I request the authorities concerned to look into this matter at the earliest in order to ensure that electricity is supplied to the school building, which will help the students gain knowledge in a cordial environment,” the headmistress concluded.