It has been more than a year since the Punjab government embarked upon its plan to establish police patrolling posts on major highways of the province. The staff deployed at these patrolling posts was appointed on higher salaries and made responsible for checking highway robberies, inter-provincial smuggling and movement of proclaimed offenders.

So far around 200 police posts have been constructed at the cost of millions of rupees and there are many more to be established in months to come.

The plan executed on the special directions of Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervez Elahi, however, received a major blow a couple of days back. What happened was that several allegations of misappropriation of funds allocated for this purpose and use of substandard material in the construction of patrolling posts against the contractors of C&W Department turned out to be true. When this was brought to the notice of the CM, he not only ordered a high-level inquiry into the matter but also gave directions that in future C&W shall not be given the task of constructing patrolling posts. He also announced that the contract for construction of around 150 patrolling posts would now be awarded to the National Logistic Cell (NLC).

It was none other than Director General Monitoring & Inspection, Punjab Highway Patrolling Posts, Air Commodore (retd) Khalid Bashir Cheema who unearthed this scam. It was observed during routine inspections that condition of most of the buildings of the posts, especially those in the northern Punjab, became worse in a short span of only one year. According to the same report, the C&W high-ups violated the departmental rules and made advance payments to some contractors before the completion of the work. Besides, they did not take any pains to ensure that the construction work carried out by these contractors was upto the mark.

The report further reveals that though necessary repair work has been carried out by contractors at some places, it is of inferior quality. There are several patrolling posts whose boundary walls are yet to be constructed. Sewerage system of most of the posts is not working and hardly any proper outlet is provided. Problems of leakage and seepage in many buildings are aggravating because of the faulty and substandard plumbing work done here. This seepage has weakened the very foundations of the building structures at many places, enhancing the chances of their sudden collapse. To one's amazement, many buildings lack staircases, have single-phase meters installed instead of three-phase. The inquiry report says several cracks have appeared on the walls and ceilings of the rooms of these patrolling posts due to use of second-rate cement as well as paint.

When contacted for confirmation of report findings, Director General Monitoring & Inspection, Punjab Highway Patrolling Posts, Air Commodore (retd) Khalid Bashir Cheema, tells The News on Sunday that misappropriation of funds to the tune of millions of rupees has been confirmed in this case. He says in the absence of an effective mechanism of checks and balances, the C&W department played havoc with the project. Cheema says there are as many as 238 operational patrolling posts across the province while 24 are under constructions and over 150 will be constructed in the near future.

For administrative purposes, he says, the department has divided the area having patrolling posts into two major regions-North Zone and South Zone. North Zone is made up of regions like Rawalpindi , Mianwali, Gujranwala Gujrat, Jhelum, Sialkot etc while the South Zone consists of Multan, Faisalabad, Sargodha, and Jhang. Around 100 posts are located in the North Zone while the rest are situated in the South Zone. The substandard construction work has particularly been carried out in the North Zone by the C&W contractors as majority of these posts are in very poor shape, Cheema adds.

He tells TNS that a patrolling post covers an area of 3,750 square feet and consists of 12 rooms out of which four are situated on the ground floor while eight are located on the first floor. These rooms include one meant for the incharge of the post, a kitchen, two toilets, one lockup and three others called moharrar's room, wireless room and store room.

The total cost incurred on the construction of one patrolling post ranges from Rs 3.5 million to Rs 6 million. "I am dead sure that not less than Rs 1.5 million to Rs 2 million per post have been misappropriated by the contractors and C&W officials who are working hand in glove with each other. I was also informed by an insider that the contracts for construction of these posts were accorded to the favourites of the C&W department. These contractors kept on getting revised cost benefits by employing several delaying tactics," says the DG. He goes on to say that the success of the whole project, initiated by Punjab CM to combat highway crime, has been put on stake by certain unscrupulous elements. "Uprooting of this mafia should be our priority if we want to see the province on road to economic growth, prosperity and peaceful living," he adds.

Muhammad Abbas, an assistant sub-inspector stationed at a patrolling post, says it is next to impossible for him and his colleagues to perform well and remain polite to people in such unsavoury working conditions. Besides, "we are under permanent mental stress owing to life threat posed to us by these dangerous buildings." He says a letter to this effect was also been written to the higher authorities by the DIG Patrolling Posts Punjab, Tariq Saleem Dogar some time back but to no avail.

C&W officer, Naeem Chughtai, who is incharge of the Patrolling Posts Project, South Zone, confirms to TNS that construction work of remaining patrolling posts has been handed over to the NLC after the Chief Minister Punjab expressed his displeasure over the work completed by C&W department. He, however, rules out the alleged pilferage of funds by the C&W contractors, saying the only problem is that we have received some complaints of seepage of water from some posts. "These complaints stand redressed as we have started repair work at these patrolling posts," he says.

Motorists as well as passengers passing through Road No 1 outside Model Town Society (MTS) connecting Ferozepur Road, Ittefaq Hospital and Model Town Link Road are about to take a sigh of relief. After about five years, a Citizen Community Board (CCB) has taken an initiative to totally revamp this extremely dilapidated road.

Presently, vehicles taking the road from Model Town Link Road face craters about six to seven feet in diameter and four to six inches deep. Come rain and these craters turn into puddles.

The condition of this road is like many others in the uptown areas including Gulberg, Muslim Town and Faisal Town where main roads are well kept with green belts etc. while small roads and streets in the interior are rundown and broken.

Shaukat Khan Khichi, Secretary Model Town Society told TNS that this is all about to be changed in a few weeks time as the Model Town CCB has been allocated about Rs.182 million fund for the reconstruction of this road. "The government has paid 80 per cent of this allocation while MTS has given 20 per cent (about 3.3 million)," he said. Khichi informed that tenders in this regard would be floated very soon.

"This road is in the jurisdiction of MTS and the society collects toll tax from commercial traffic plying on this road, which makes the society totally responsible for its upkeep," said Nazim Union Council-129 Chaudhry Abdul Mannan. "This road is situated on one side of constituency of UC-129 that comprises Liaquatabad, Dhalla Flats, Model Town Q-Block Extension and Model Town R-Block Extension (both LDA housing schemes) and a Katchi Abadi by a sewage drain Nullah."

This road is a major link for tens of thousands of people, hailing from these areas, with Faisal Town, Township, Model Town and beyond.

To a query as to why the upkeep and periodic repair of this road was neglected for so long, Abdul Mannan said this was because the residents of residents of MTS do not use it very often so the Society high-ups my not have felt the need to fix it. However, he said the reconstruction of this road by a CCB is good news.

It should be noted that usually MTS repairs all roads within the society almost every year and these are kept in pretty good condition.

Mirza Mujeer, a resident of W-Block Model Town, said this road has been neglected for long because it is situated between MTS and LDA hosing schemes. So, the responsibility to reconstruct or even do patchwork on its broken parts was a bone of contention between the two bodies. People suffered as a consequence. "Most people using cars and other vehicles to go to their jobs or perform any other chores endure this broken road and have to incur expenses almost every month on the repair of their vehicles mainly their suspensions and shock absorbers including tyres and wheel alignment," he claimed.

MTS Engineering Section In-charge Hassan Mahmood told TNS that Model Town CCB would completely rebuild this road from scratch and that MTS president Col Tahir Ali Kardar (retired) had been making efforts that proved fruitful.

"According to the plans chalked out, this road will be widened by five feet on both sides making it a 27 feet wide road where traffic can ply easily," he added and held that people of Model Town G-Block, Q-Block Extension and R-block Extension will be facilitated by this road and that traffic burden form other roads would be somewhat eased.

Mahmood Hassan also said electric poles on the roadside, particularly by the twin graveyards near the Model Town Link Road, would also be removed so that the road could be widened. "We will construct a whole new road with proper drainage."

As they say life is a candle which burns itself and gives light to others, there are many who live to give pleasure to people; their services remaining un-acknowledged. The boatsmen at River Ravi are among such people.

Just a few hundred yards from the ancient city of Lahore flows the old Ravi. Kamran's Baradari now situated right in the centre of the river had always been a popular picnic spot for the people of Lahore. If someone wanted to visit, he had to use a boat; justifying the need for these boatsmen. The situation has changed completely. The river has become a drain of wastewater from the city. Kamran's Baradari is not as popular a spot for people as it used to be.

Many of these boatsmen engaged in this profession for generations are seen waiting for visitors. Their ores seem to be hiding many stories from the past. Ravi may have changed its course many a time but one thing that has remained constant is the facility of boatsmen who went wherever the river did. A journey spanning centuries.

New age calls for new style. When today the waters of all rivers in the world bear the weight of motorboats and ferries, Ravi still hosts the same old traditional boats with the traditional boatsmen, alongside motorboats of course. A weather stricken 60 year old boatman Arshad says: "My boatman father brought me to Ravi when I was just six years old." 55 years on, he is still playing with the ores entrusted to him by his father. "I am a father of six and two of my sons earn their livelihood from rowing their boats in the river. I remain beside the river from dawn to dusk in case a visitor needs my services."

"I had rescued approximately 50 people from drowning in the river during the 1988 flood but water in Ravi now seems to be an old story," he says. Arshad has many stories to tell but he thinks that the new generation is not interested either in Ravi or the stories related to because they have not seen water in Ravi. For them it is muddy and ill-smelling, little better than a drain. He says that a boatman's sons can only be boatsmen but it's very hard these days for them to earn bread and butter.

According to Arshad almost 200 families are associated with this profession but boating these days is feasible only during the monsoon season. "Rest of the year all these people associated with the profession do almost nothing -- except wait for visitors, sometimes for hours. The dry Ravi means that we have nothing to do."

Shahbaz, another boatman, says: "The life of a boatman is always at stake. The passengers in the boat are our responsibility and we pray to Allah for a peaceful journey. We work under the supervision of a contractor. During monsoon season a boatman can easily earn Rs.200 a day but these days it is hard to earn even one hundred rupees."

According to another boatman Asghar Ali: "Shortage of water is one reason that keeps visitors away from the river but the main problem is the factories' effluents that make the river water smelly. The waste water of factories and surrounding localities has destroyed not only the river but also the boatsmen of Ravi.

"The polluted water is also very harmful for boats. Twenty years back a boat could easily row for six to ten years but now the lifespan of a boat is not more than two years. We have to pay heavy amounts for repair of our boats." According to Asghar, a boat is not the only thing destroyed by polluted water, the flora and fauna is badly affected too. "Once the river was full of different kinds of fish, tortoise, snakes, not anymore," he says.

The factory owners and residents of the area know the problem well but say they have no other option. Seth Arshad Mahmood, factory owner and politician from Shahdra says: "We don't have an alternative way of disposing off factory waste. We never got any notice from an official regarding disposal of waste material in Ravi," he says. Arshad Mahmood himself, once a regular visitor to Kamran's Baradari, has not gone there for almost seven years. "I cannot bear the smell of the water," he says. Not a single government was serious in saving Ravi from becoming a wastewater drain.

Sadia Humayon, MPA and parliamentary secretary of Environment, says the government is well aware of the problems of boatsmen and Ravi. "I brought the matter to the notice of Punjab Assembly and chief minister Punjab who already has announced to install a water treatment plant on Ravi," she says. Sadia thinks the project will not only help eliminate pollution from Ravi's water but also help boatmen to run their business throughout the year.

Government is spending a huge amount of money on improving the standard of education in Pakistan. Especially the Government of Punjab has taken several steps to increase the literacy rate in the province and promote education. These steps include provision of 'Free Books', 'Free Education' and 'Participation of Community/ NGOs'.

The government has strictly banned corporal punishment in all educational institutions including private sector. This is a great attraction to those students who are afraid of punishment, we see 'Maar Nahi Piyar' slogan on the gate of every government school. A large numbers of trained and qualified teachers have been appointed 'educators' on contract basis. No doubt above-mentioned steps have improved enrolments in government schools. The question remains: To what extent these steps are promoting education?

Majority of the teachers appreciate the 'free books' policy for students and say this attraction has increased enrolment in government schools at every level. At the same time it is pointed out that the school buildings in most schools are not sufficient to accommodate the increased number of students. So the students are bound to get education in combined classes or without classrooms under the sun/sky.

The teachers express their concern at the late distribution of books when they should be in the hands of students in the beginning of the educational session i.e in the month of June before the summer vacations start so that the students may be able to consult the books during the free long period of vacations rather than to spend summer vacations without any target. In the absence of text books majority of the students waste their time and remain out of touch with studies. Resultantly, when they join school after vacations they seem to be blank and it becomes very hard to motivate them to study text.

Students admitted late buy books from market. Both parents and students appreciate 'Free Book' policy of government but many complain they did not get books in time or they did not get it at all. Another common complaint is reported especially in primary schools where the little ones are refused to provide the books for the second time if the first book is destroyed or lost.

Majority of the heads of government schools disapprove of free education. They say government schools get very nominal funds after much hassle, at least if there are funds they do not reach the heads of government schools. They believe those who can, should pay. The tuition fee should be deposited in the government treasury and the funds are to afford the basic school needs and that of the needy students' tuition fee/uniform and expenditures of sports at school. These funds are also favourable for extra curricular activities. Now when there is no fund, every government institution is facing problems. Besides, there is strict ban on individual collection from students who can afford.

It is worth mentioning to point out at this juncture that there is no fund for the monthly tests or mid term exams at the level of school heads. No grant is available for the purchase of question papers/answer sheets, whereas monthly tests and mid exams are compulsory. In this situation the teachers are directed by the head of the institution to continue this practice by means of black board or photo copy at their own expense or self-help basis. This is another way of collection from the students with the request not to declare this contribution to any one, especially monitoring team.

In this way the morale and dignity of the teacher is suffering a lot. They suggest that this free education should be for deserving students not for every one. Visit to various schools showed that most of the heads of the schools were not present in their institutions. They were out for official meeting and official purposes. Majority of them were reported to have gone to education office for allocation of funds or for payment of utility bills. Clearance of bills is also a burning issue in education department, teachers say. Majority of the parents and students are for free education though and consider it a good step to promote education.

Every teacher dislikes the government policy of 'Maar Nahi Piyar' which they think makes teachers appear ridiculous as many children would not work otherwise and this hampers good result. This policy has demoralised the teacher. Majority of the parents think there is no harm in light punishment to correct students while students appreciate the policy which has checked beating for good.

At present many NGOs have adopted many government schools. Some of them are doing really a marvellous job and producing good results. The teachers hired by these NGOs are qualified and motivated as compared to those employed by government. They are doing really good but their pay package is less as compared to their colleagues in government sector. It is feared that they will soon lose interest in the absence of incentives.

Proper check and balance system is quite necessary for both students and teachers. While visiting various schools it was observed that most of the teachers were not present in their classes, they were out for official purposes just like exam duty, paper marking or other routine official jobs. Others were present in the school but enjoying gup shup.

Clean government school is a rarity.

Here is how a friend speaks of his relationship with his cell mate:

"I am beginning to like my mobile telephone. It still nags me at odd times of the day and it makes escape from the humdrum of life impossible. But its positive side is all too welcome for me to crib over such minor interventions and invasions. The small gadget is a likeable companion for the humour it constantly supplies me with. That is some compensation for my deprived childhood where certain aspects that made good humour were declared out of bounds for me.

The problem with being a good boy is that once you have such a reputation, you can never shrug it off. For years on I was kept away from the good things that God had created for us by friends who did not want me to lose the name I had earned for myself through abstinence. So much so that some of them would frown the moment I would step into the PC (Press Club) for a late night cup of tea. Even that was in their eyes forbidden for someone with as immaculate a reputation as me. They would wait for my departure before they opened up big time, and often the ring of laughter from behind me would haunt me for days. Certain topics, certain ideas, certain people, I was implicitly told were taboo for me. But what I would feel the most, they wouldn't share the big boys' jokes with me. Many times someone from among them started to tell a joke but as soon as he realised that I was around, he left the rest of it unsaid. Perhaps they knew it or perhaps they didn't, but I always got the gist of the whispering they would indulge in by my side.

That has changed and I think the deficit to a large extent has been covered by my cell mate, which has other wonders to its credit besides curbing the unpleasant bouts of fidgeting some of us would resort to when we had free time and free hands. Now I get my share of the bad good jokes because the sender is not quite as embarrassed as a teller would be in the past. On average I get four or five of them every day. Some of them do not qualify as jokes even, but they surely help me make up for what I had missed so far..."