PESHAWAR: Despite frequent commitments and receiving huge funds from international donors, both the federal and provincial government have failed to reconstruct over 1,500 schools which were damaged or destroyed in the October 8, 2005, earthquake.
As a result of government’s failure in the reconstruction of schools, educational activities are badly affected in almost all of the earthquake affected areas of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), especially in Balakot, Batgram, Shangla and Kohistan districts.
The October 8 earthquake, which caused a loss of around 100,000 live, injured around 75,000 people and displaced over 2.5 million people, also led to the destruction of 3,669 schools only in KP.
Soon after the severe earthquake, the federal government had established and authorised the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) for rescue, reconstruction and rehabilitation of the affected areas. A large number of foreign countries and donors whole-heartedly extended their contribution for the rescue, relief, reconstruction and rehabilitation of earthquake victims.
Later, the KP government constituted the Earthquake Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Authority (ERRA) for addressing the issues of reconstruction and rehabilitation. The ERRA, according to its documents, has completed construction of 1,698 schools with an estimated cost of Rs9491 billion and has admitted failing in the reconstruction of 1,227 schools due to a shortage of funds and resources.
KP Minister for Elementary Education Mohammad Atif Khan while talking to media alleged that the federal government had failed in honouring its commitments regarding reconstruction of schools, which are affecting the educational activities. He said that 1,500 schools are still awaiting reconstruction, which requires an amount of Rs10 billion.
Former prime minister Nawaz Sharif had made commitments for the reconstruction of these schools in 2014, remarked Atif and added that the federal government has yet to honour such commitments. He said that for this purpose, several letters had been sent to the former prime minister as well as Minister of State for Education Baleeghur Rehman.
The education minister also claimed that the provincial government had completed the construction of 760 earthquake damaged schools with a cost of Rs8 billion. The ERRA, according to provincial government officials, had refused to reconstruct these schools as they were demolished after completion of their survey.
Officials in the education department said that the buildings of these schools were damaged and declared ‘dangerous’ by experts, therefore, they were demolished.
According to further details, the KP government had allocated Rs4.6 billion for the reconstruction of these schools in 2014 -2015 budget and the process was completed in 2016 at a cost of Rs8 billion.
Mian Ziaur Rehman, MPA from Balakot, while talking to Pakistan Today expressed serious concern over the attitude of both the federal as well as provincial government towards earthquake victims. He said that the government in 2007 announced the construction of ‘New Balakot City’ but had failed in executing this project. Similarly, he said that a large number of schools, which were destroyed or damaged by the earthquake, was not yet constructed.
He also said that thousands of homeless people were still residing in shelters, which are too cold in winter and too hot in summer, provided by Saudi Arabia.
Syed Sajid Shah, an educationist who was serving in Mansehra district during the earthquake, has also confirmed the delay in reconstruction of damaged schools. In fact, he said the government is not serious to address the issue.
Similarly, he said that there is a lack of understanding and coordination between the federal and provincial governments which affected the reconstruction and rehabilitation process in the earthquake affected areas.
