KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Friday observed that despite huge allocations in the budget for the education department, there were serious flaws as the buildings of governmentschools were in a dilapidated condition alloverthe province.

The SHC summoned the chief engineer of education works department and the director of planning to appear in person on Jan is and justify the reasons behind pathetic condition of such buildings.

Otherwise, the court warned, the matter would be referred to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for a probe into the investments made over the last five years and improper utilisation of the funds by the respective engineers as theyhad siphoned off the money which resulting in serious damage to the buildings.

The single-judge bench of the SHC headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar directed the secretary of finance to ensure release of funds from annual development programme as well as the funds meant for maintenance and repairs (M&R) preferably within seven days. It said unnecessary technical objections must be overruled.

It also said that if any child received injury at such schoolsdue to negligence in the construction work, a criminal case should be registered against the executive engineer and contractor concerned on behalf of the state with the concurrence of the head master/principal.

The bench ordered the provincial police officer to direct all SSPs to get cases registered whenever such an incident was published in newspapers or reported to the police by any source.

`Simultaneously, the district & sessions judges shall also ensure that in such cases alldelinquents are booked under the Pakistan Penal Code as no one can be allowed to create such atmosphere in the schools, where the students are studying, which are running either in public sector/stateowned buildings, having involvement of huge funds, despite that such types of incidents occur,` it added.

The bench issued such directives while hearing a petition about pathetic condition of government school buildings in Mirpurkhas and Sanghar.

At the outset of the hearing, officials of the School Education & Literacy Department submitted a report in the light of last order.

The bench noted that in view of the report, the condition of school buildings was pathetic and required major repair while basic facilities were also not available adding that millions had been allocated, but there were day-to-day incidents due to which children re ceived injuries.

`The right to life is not restricted only to the prose-cution of a person but the state is required to ensure that all aspects of citizens including students` life are protected and dealt with by the state,` it added.

The officials submitted that repair of such schools with allied facilities was to be undertaken immediately since the amount had been reserved for such schools and they would send a summary under the M&R for release of funds to the finance department.

Thereafter, the bench directed secretary of finance to release the same within seven days after receipt of such summaries/recommendations and file compliance report at the next haring.