BATTAGRAM: The provincial government has announced a major initiative to address longstanding issue of teacher shortage in public sector schools.

MPA Taj Mohammad Khan, chairman of standing committee for education, on Sunday said that the government would soon recruit 16,000 fresh teachers to fill the vacancies in schools across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

`This significant move is aimed at providing quality education to students and equipping government schools with necessary facilities,` he said.

The announcement was made during a prize distribution ceremony held at the deputy commissioner`s office, where students, who excelled in divisional and provincial level co-curricular competitions, were honoured.

MPA Taj Mohammad emphasised that the government was committed to improving the education sector, which has been neglected in the past. He noted that government schools` students were equally talented as those in private institutions, but the lack of resources and facilities had affected the quality of education.

`This has created a disparity between public and private sector institutions, making it challenging for students from government schools to compete with their counterparts from private schools.

`To address the issues, the government has planned to advertise 16,000 different cadre positions, for which necessary preparations have been made. This recruitment drive is expected to improve the quality of education and provide opportunities for character building, which were previously only available to students in private institutions,` the lawmaker said.

`In addition to recruiting new teachers, the government has also allocated Rs70 million to rebuild schools damaged in the 2005 earthquake. This fund will be utilised to speed up construction work based on need, with a focus on schools that were severely affected by the disaster,` he said.

MPA Taj Mohammad distributed cash and presents among the position holders. He congratulated the students on their achievements and encouraged them to continue working hard to achieve their goals.

Deputy commissioner Asif Ali Khan and district education officer Aamirur Rehman also spoke on the occasion, praising the students for their outstanding performance. They noted that students from Battagram, which is a backward district, excelling in divisional and provincial level co-curricular competitions was a remarkable achievement. They expressed hope that these students will show similar performance in curricular competitions as well.