The education department keeps upgrading government-run schools but regularly fails to post requisite heads in time to run them properly, resulting in 60 schools in Kupwara district alone without principals or headmasters.
An official in the department said that out of 52 HigherSecondary Schools in the frontier district 32 don’t have principles, and out of95 Middle Schools 28 don’t have headmasters.
Also, 247 lecturer posts are lying vacant for years ineducation department’s Kupwara section, the official said.
The posts are lying vacant mainly due to the up-gradation ofschools from Primary to Middle and Middle to Higher Secondary level. Many postsof principals and headmasters are created in the process but are rarely filledup in time for the upgraged schools to function appropriately.
Class work and administrative affairs of these schools getdelayed and problems accumulate.
Teachers posted in the schools said that they approachedhigher authorities many times for filling up these posts but no to avail.
“The problems in the schools are tackled by the head of theinstitution but in their absence the functioning of the school gets ruined,”said a teacher Tariq Ahmad of Sogam.
A group of students told Greater Kashmir that the school wasfacing several problems in the absence of a head.
“It is very unfortunate that our school is functioningwithout a principle for years now, which has adversely affected performance ofthe students,” said Nasir Ahmad, a student of Chandigam Middle School.
Another student Arshid Ahmad said that there was noauthorised person to resolve the problems they face.
“We face tremendous problems and there is no one to discusswith in this far flung area,” Ahmad said.
Similarly, the students of Middle School Budnamal resent thecasual approach of the authorities in education department.
“This school is in far flung area of Kupwara where theauthorities hardly pay a visit to check the functioning, but in the absence ofhead we remain deprived of development of our school,” said Talib Ahmad, astudent.
The Middle School Chandigam, Krusan, Kanthpora, Budnamal andother schools have seen their Headmaster chair lying vacant from years.
Government-run higher secondary schools at Warsun, Keran,Sogam, Maidanpora, Tekipora and other schools are also without Principals.
The posts have been created after the schools were upgradedfrom primary to Middle and Middle to Higher level.
“No promotion (of teachers to higher positions) has takenplace from months now which is the reason that these head posts are lyingvacant,” said Chief Education Officer Kupwara Mohammad Shafi.
“Recently I have discussed the issue with the DeputyCommissioner Kupwara to find a way to fill up these vacant posts.”