LAHORE: A Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf MPA has reported a gloomy and dilapidated picture of a girl`s college in Maryam Nawaz` constituency just in the backyard of her Raiwind residence.

While the chief minister boasts of championing women education in the province, MPA Ahmer Rasheed Bhatti says that the college presents a picture of neglect, including lack of basic infrastructure, trained teachers, lab equipment, shabby classrooms and disproportionate student-teacher ratio and missing facilities.

Mr Bhatti, elected from PP-165 (Lahore-XXI), in his report submitted to the Punjab Assembly`s secretary general (under section 17(2) of the Punjab Privileges Act 1972) for onward submis-sion to the minister in charge for further necessary action, states that most girls were forced to discontinue studies after secondary education because of lack of post-secondary education in the vicinity.

He said the college offered only a limited number of bachelor`s programmes due to insufficient infrastructure.

The MPA stated that he was invited to attend the annual council meeting of the Govt Graduate College for Women, Raiwind, by the principal where the issues were highlighted that needed to be plugged to offer quality education to the girls in the Raiwind area.

Mr Bhatti stated that a sports complex was under construction adjacent to the college building. He said the college council unanimously decided that the college should sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the relevant sports authorities to make the sports facility available to the students since there was no proper sports ground where the girls could play sports. He suggested to the higher education department to sign an MoU with the sports department to enable the girls access to the stadium.The MPA said the existing college library consisted of one small room and a few books in a dilapidated condition while it had no furniture. He suggested that the education department could provide digital libraries (Kindle tabs) to the college as they were cost-effective and provide access to thousands of books for a few thousand rupees.

`The director general Punjab Public Libraries has thousands of these tabs waiting to be distributed,` he pointed out and added that the college should also be provided with some funds for renovation and furniture of the library.

Mr Bhatti observed that it was quite woeful to mention that in this day and age of artificial intelligence (AI), the college computer lab was dysfunctional.

`It has approximately 20 desktop computers and all of them are out of order, which has deprived the students of modern skills of Information Technology,` he stated. There was also no multimedia equipment available. `Despite having a female chief minister from the same constituency (PP-159 (Lahore-XV), the young girls of the area are deprived ofmodern education and skills of computer,` he stated.

The MPA added that electricity during summers was a rare commodity in the vicinity; therefore, it usually became extremely difficult for the girls to attend lectures in the classrooms in the sweltering heat. He stressed a survey might be conducted by the energy department to install solar panels to electrify the college and keep it running in absence of electricity by Lesco.

He reported that there were no classrooms for the bachelor`s programme and the college did not have a dedicated building for bachelor`s classes. `Currently, the classes are being held in two rooms at the residence of the principal,` he lamented and called for constructing a new academic block for the degree programme.

`Since the chief minister is eager about empowering women, let this report serve as a reminder to begin charity from home nay her backyard (main town Raiwind), he wrote.

Mr Bhatti stated that the track leading to the college was about 200 meters from the main roadandneededtobeconstructed. `It becomes extremely difficult for girls to walk on the track, especially when it rains or sewerage overflows along the track,` he observed.

He also pointed out that there was no watercooler installed at the college of 1,200 students and no dustbins installed in the college for lack of funds.

He called for funds to install water-coolers and dustbins and suggested that the Lahore Waste Management Company (LWMC) might be directed to collect garbage on a regular basis from the premises.

`Since the chief minister plans to extend the garbage collection services from the capital city to far-flung districts and hamlets perhaps, she would prioritise collecting garbage from a women`s college not very far from her own home,` he suggested.

The MPA stated that there was no auditorium in the college and the administration was using a classroom as makeshift auditorium whenever there was a function or event.

He requested that funds should be allocated in the next Annual Development Programme for the establishment of a college auditorium.

Mr Bhatti also urged the minister-in-charge to visit the college and see for himself the shabby conditions of the college, which resembles a haunted house.