Excelsior Correspondent
SOPORE, Oct 18: Education Minister Naeem Akhtar today said “written test” has been made mandatory for candidates who apply for the post of teachers in the Government.
“We can’t afford to play with the lives of our children. This move will ensure that only quality human resources makes its way into the Education Department,” he said during his visit to Degree College Sopore.
Mr Akhtar said a big fraud was played on the people of J&K through Government-run schools where “square pegs are used to fill round holes”.
Recalling the bombardment of Japan’s Hiroshima and Nagasaki cities by Allied Forces during World War II and how the country made education as its priority to rise as an economic superpower, Mr Akhtar said the talented youth of Kashmir have proven their mettle in fields of Arts, Science and Sports.
Describing Sopore as an epitome of J&K’s resilience, he said the town kept its head high in tough times, inspiring a generation of people to stand up against injustices.
“People didn’t like coming to Sopore because there was no guarantee of returning home safely. Sopore had fallen on bad times, but today, I am going back with a lot of hope, promise and pleasure,” he said, amid thunderous applause from a packed auditorium.
“The faces of these students give me courage to do what I am doing, despite apprehensions of cynics about our people,” he added.
The Education Minister was on a tour of Sopore during which he visited Degree College Sopore, two higher secondary schools and a private school. He was accompanied by Deputy Commissioner Baramulla, Yasha Mudgal, Chief Education Officer, Baramulla, and other senior officers of civil and police administration.
In his address at SRM Welkin Higher Secondary School, the Education Minister said during the times of turbulence in the State, canards were spread about the abilities of the people of J&K.
“We were being pitied for our failure to create institutions but Sopore has made a change. We have shown that we can achieve anything. The students of Welkin are ambassadors of not only Sopore but of the entire J&K,” he said.
The Education Minister also urged the management of Welkin School to play their part in ending the educational apartheid in the state by adopting a government school in Sopore as “Model School”. The Welkin management assured to oblige the Minister.
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