Appealing for insulating education from politics, Minister for Education, Syed Mohammad Altaf Bukhari today said that disturbing academics for serving political interests will lead the society into the perpetual darkness and threaten future of students.He appealed the leadership across the political spectrum to spare education from politics. “The precious time of students should not be wasted by involving them in any political activities. It is the time when students should focus on their studies and later on they can decide their future course accordingly,” Bukhari said.The Education Minister made these remarks during the Annual Day celebrations at S.P Higher Secondary School, M.A Road which he attended as the chief guest. Secretary School Education, Farooq Ahmad Shah, Director School Education Kashmir, Dr. G.N Ittoo, Special Project Director RMSA, Tufail Mattoo, CEO Srinagar, Farooq Ahmad Dar, Principals of various educational institutions, Chairman Private Schools Association, G.N Var and other concerned were present on the occasion.During the celebratory function, several cultural programs, skits, qawali, solo songs were presented by various groups of students which were highly appreciated by the audience.
The Minister appreciated the performances of the students and said that these functions provide a platform to students where they can showcase their talent and also highlight issues confronting them. He said that the students of Kashmir are talented and they have proved their mettle at national as well as international levels. “A place like J&K which has been a source of inspiration for knowledge in the entire sub-continent has to be revived as a hub of emancipation for our future generations," the Minister said and added that the present generation of youth in Kashmir have gone through the most turbulent times in history unlike their predecessors and it is now time to secure their future through best possible education.The Minister also hailed the contribution of the Higher Secondary in keeping the light of education beaming amid difficult circumstances in Kashmir in the past. He also complimented the private sector for supplementing the Government's efforts towards the betterment of education in the State.On the request of the students, Bukhari announced that the bus service will be provided to SP Higher Secondary School and Government Girls Higher Secondary School, Kothi Bagh. He said that the bus service for the students will start from March next year on experimental basis.He also announced that the CM’s Super 50 coaching classes will be conducted in S.P Higher Secondary School too. Bukhari also asked the school authorities to start students counselling cell.Addressing the function, Secretary School Education said that various initiatives have been taken to revive the education sector in the Valley. He said that the Government is upgrading infrastructure in various schools so that students get benefitted.In order to make education sector more vibrant, Shah said, “we will be declaring the results in one month after the examinations. By this students don’t need to wait for long and can get more time for studies.”Later, Bukhari released ‘Mathematics Learning’, a book to understand mathematics authored by ZEO Narbal, Abdul Rashid Zargar. He also distributed mementoes among the students for their better performances in sports and art.
On the occasion, Director School Education announced the prize of Rs 10,000 for the group of cultural performance students. They were also invited to participate in the tour to Gulmarg which is sponsored by Directorate of Education.Meanwhile, students from Amira Kadal Girls Higher Secondary School who participated in ISRO quiz at Hyderabad met the Minister and shared their experiences with the Minister.