PM sets one-week reform deadline
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday directed the urgent implementation of reforms in infrastructure, curriculum, teachers’ training and related areas across Islamabad government schools, and ordered that problems facing the institutions be resolved within a week. Chairing a high-level meeting on the federal capital’s public schools, he asked Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal to ensure the issues are cleared within that timeframe.
The prime minister said authorities should mobilise all available resources to tackle infrastructure problems on an emergency basis, stressing that a safe learning environment is the government’s responsibility.
Free lunch, smart boards and better access
He directed the activation of a free lunch programme in government schools so students receive proper nutrition, and ordered smart boards installed in all government schools as soon as possible. Officials were also told to draft a strategy to make the Federal Directorate of Education a more effective and efficient body.
Teachers, he said, should focus only on teaching and educational work and should not be given other duties. Recruitment of teachers must be strictly on merit. To improve access, he called for expanding the government school bus service and for outsourcing bus services for student transport, with third-party validation.
He further instructed authorities to promote solarisation in government schools, install ramps in all institutions for students with physical disabilities, and provide quality medical facilities on campus.
What the school survey found
Officials briefed the meeting on a survey of curriculum, infrastructure and other matters in the capital’s government schools, carried out under directions the prime minister issued in September 2026. The meeting was told that most Islamabad government schools already had basic facilities such as internet connectivity, clean drinking water and computer laboratories, though infrastructure-related issues had been identified in some of the schools covered.
The briefing also pointed to the need to empower head teachers and encourage innovation. Officials said 278 government buses were operating across Islamabad to help students reach school.
Federal Ministers Ahsan Iqbal, Dr Musadik Masood Malik, Attaullah Tarar and Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, and senior officials from the relevant departments attended.
Timeline: what has happened so far
- September 2026: The prime minister directed a survey of curriculum, infrastructure and related issues in government schools in the federal capital.
- October 28, 2026: Shehbaz Sharif chaired a high-level meeting, ordered reforms implemented urgently, and set a one-week deadline to resolve identified problems, with further directives on lunches, smart boards, buses, solar power, ramps and medical care.
Aasan alfaaz mein
Wazir-e-Azam ne Islamabad ke sarkari schoolon mein jaldi islaah ka hukum diya hai. Schoolon ke masail ek haftay ke andar hall karne ka kehna hai. Free lunch, smart boards, buses aur asaan rasai jaise qadam bhi maange gaye hain. Bacchon ke walidain ke liye yeh matlab hai ke sarkari schoolon mein behtar facilities aur khuraak par ziada tawajjo di ja rahi hai.
