MANSEHRA: At least 15 schoolchildren were injured, four of them critically, when two school vans collided in Hamshirian area of the district on Thursday.

`We received 15 children at the King Abdullah Teaching Hospital (Kath) after the accident, and four of them were referred to Ayub Medical Complex in critical condition,` said a doctor on duty in the emergency ward. The vans were carrying students from different areas to schools in Barkund.

Both the vehicles were damaged and people retrieved the injured students after breaking doors of the vans and took them to Kath.

The injured were identified as Sajjawal Khan, Sonia Bibi, Rafaqat Ali, Maimoona Shah, Sajjad Ali, Mahnoor, Mohammad Javed, Waqar Khan, Khursheed, Bilal Ahmad, Mohammad Shoaib, Salma Bibi, Mohammad Yaisr, Ans Rabbani and Khursheed Ali.

The parents and relatives also rushed to the hospital to take care of their children. Khaki police have registered the FIR, while drivers of both the vans are yet to be arrested.

ENROLMENT DRIVE: District education officer, Mansehra, Gohar Ali has asked the teachers to get the help of ulema and elders in their respective union councils for enrolment of out-of-school children during the ongoing enrolment campaign in the district.

He was speaking at a gathering of teachers in Jaboori area here on Thursday. The teachers in Siren valley attended the meeting and also presented their progress reports.

The DEO said that children in 59 union councils would be enrolled in schools during the ongoing drive from Sept 1 to Dec 30. He said that the task could be made easy if teachers showed a sense of responsibility and involved ulema and elders in areas of their respective schools.

He said that the teachers should discharge their duties with dedication and ensure their presence on duty. Mr Ali said that he had taken action against five teachers of government high school, Nawazabad, for being absent from duty.