SIALKOT
Local influential people have converted empty building of Govt Masjid Maktab School Kohaar-Sialkot into a cattle-shed and have been using the building for keeping their cattle.
According to local notables including Zafar Iqbal Dhillu, Shamas, Mehboob Alam, Azhar Mehmood, Ghulam Rasul, Bashir Ahmed, Nasir Mehmood, Muhammad Iqbal, Ghulam Hussain, Allah Rakha Muhammad Sadique and Sakeena Bibi, the Sialkot district administration had merged the Govt Masjid Maktab School Kohaar-Sialkot into a local Govt Community Primary Model School at village Kohaar five years ago due to small number of students and teachers. Then, district administration did not announce any other “official” use of this building, which became empty after this merger. The building was lying empty there. Talking advantage of this situation, some local people, stated to be influential politically, illegally occupied the school building and converted the government school building into a cattle shed where they keep their cattle and storing e fodder in the classrooms.
Local notables added that this practice had been continued for last five six consecutive years and went unchecked so far.
They alleged that this miserable and shameful situation had repeatedly been brought into the notice of the officials concerned of Sialkot education department, but in vain, saying that the officials concerned had allegedly turned a eye blind towards this burning issue.
No practical step could be initiated by the Sialkot district administration to retrieve this government building from the illegal occupants.
Upon visit to the building, one can find cattle tie up there and grazing, with bulk storage of their fodder in classrooms. All the inner and outer walls of the classrooms of this illegally occupied school building are lying decorated with the dung cakes. Local women have been using the place for drying dung cakes, which are later, sale out to locals for fuel purposes.
Local people have expressed grave concern over this critical situation and have urged Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Commissioner Gujranwala Division Khawaja Shumail Ahmed and Sialkot DCO Nadeem Sarwar to ensure early retrieval of the school building from the politically influential occupants. They also demanded proper and suitable use of this building in the larger public interest.