Sacked AKES teachers continue strike

CHITRAL, May 24: The hunger strike launched by 20 teachers sacked by the Aga Khan Education Service (AKES) has entered its fourth day in Booni. The services of these teachers from different high schools were terminated by the management on the short notice of one day. The terminated teachers included 11 males and nine females. One Wednesday, some students also lent their support to the striking teachers by boycotting their classes and demanding reinstatement of their teachers. The teachers contend that the management was not authorized to terminate their services summarily without any prior notice of six months. On the other hand, the AKES says that the teachers refused to sit in a baseline test conducted to evaluate the efficiency of the teachers in the district.It may be noted that for last many years the AKES and its teachers in Chitral and Gilgit-Baltistan have been at the loggerheads over salaries, promotions and other facilities. This has put bad impact not only on the image of the AKES but also on the education of the students. In Chitra, the AKES runs about 55 schools and charge quite high fees from the parents but the quality of education and performance of the teachers have been not up to the mark. Despite demands by the local people, the AKES has failed to rectify the situation so far.]]>