Dilapidated school building in Rawalpindi's Doberan Kalan puts hundreds of girls at risk

Published
0
The condition of the Government Girls Higher Secondary School Doberan Kalan. — Photo courtesy author
The condition of the Government Girls Higher Secondary School Doberan Kalan. — Photo courtesy author
The condition of the Government Girls Higher Secondary School Doberan Kalan. — Photo courtesy author
The condition of the Government Girls Higher Secondary School Doberan Kalan. — Photo courtesy author

GUJAR KHAN: Hundreds of students are studying at the historic Government Girls Higher Secondary School Doberan Kalan whose building has become dilapidated.

Mohammad Muneer Chishti, a resident of Doberan Kalan town of tehsil Kallar Syedan, stated that the building of the school was constructed during the pre-partition era and later the girls school was upgraded to high and then to the higher secondary level.

He said there were 540 girls enrolled in the school and the hard working teachers were delivering over 80pc results despite limited resources.

He said eight rooms of the school were in dangerous condition due to cracks in walls and roof while only five classrooms were in hardly usable condition.

He said the government had funded construction of two new rooms and these were left incomplete for want of further funding.

Mohammad Safeer, another resident, said parents of girls were always scared about the building as the gaps in the walls were widening.

Raja Zafar, a member of the school council, said the school was upgraded to higher secondary level through the special efforts of Sadiq Sanjrani while he was Senate chairman and visited the village. However, its building could not be upgraded.

Yasin Baloch, Chief Executive Officer District Education Authority Rawalpindi, when contacted, said recommendations for reconstruction of eight dangerous rooms had been forwarded to provincial authorities in Lahore and he had also visited the school last week.

The members of the school council urged Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and provincial Minister for Education Rana Sikandar Hayat to take notice of the insecure conditions under which girls were getting education and release funds for the reconstruction of the building.

Published in Dawn, September 14th, 2026

Opinion

Editorial

Fixing bond markets
Updated 01 Oct, 2026

Fixing bond markets

Pension funds, insurance companies, mutual funds, retail investors, and eventually, foreign investors must become bigger participants in the market.
Call centre rackets
01 Oct, 2026

Call centre rackets

A NUMBER of recent raids conducted by the authorities in different cities point to the growing threat fraudulent ...
Homeward bound
01 Oct, 2026

Homeward bound

FIVE months after Somali pirates captured an oil tanker carrying a 19-member multinational crew, Somali maritime...
Kashmir unresolved
Updated 30 Sep, 2026

Kashmir unresolved

The just solution lies in India addressing the issue through a trilateral dialogue involving the legitimate representatives of the Kashmiri people and Pakistan.
Water shortage
30 Sep, 2026

Water shortage

THAT the country is entering the Rabi season with an anticipated water shortage of nearly 25pc, the lowest carryover...
Young hearts
30 Sep, 2026

Young hearts

THE observance may have passed, but the message of World Heart Day should not fade with it. The occasion is a useful...