First public school for Sikhs nears completion in Peshawar
The first public school for Sikh community in Pakistan is nearing completion in Peshawar as “90 percent construction work” has been concluded, a news outlet reported on Wednesday.
According to the report, the work on the project practically started two years ago after a piece of land was purchased in the Jogan Shah Mohalla situated in the old city.
A woman living outside Pakistan had donated Rs20 million from which the community purchased eight marlas of land. After the purchase of land, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government started construction work.
The report said a school in Peshawar had been a long-standing demand of the Sikhs from the province and the tribal areas. Previously, about 300 children from the Sikh community were studying at an NGO-run school in Dabgri. The school operating in a rented house had to be shut down after the landlords asked the administration to evacuate.
However, after demands by the Sikh community for a new school, Atif Khan, the former provincial education minister and current food minister, announced the project for the first government school for the Sikh community.
The government tasked the Sikh community with purchasing space to make the construction of the school practical. After the purchase of land, the KP government started work on the site six months ago.
“The development of the special Sikh school would also send a message to those across the border,” the report quoted Dr Sahib Singh, chairman of the National Commission for Peace Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, as saying.
The project will be the first of its kind and provide an opportunity for the children of the Sikh community and other minorities to get an education in a better environment.