70,000 Arabic teachers to be hired for teaching Quran

Sardar Usman Buzdar, the Chief Minister of Punjab, sanctioned the appointment of 70,000 Arabic teachers for the mandatory teaching of the Holy Quran in schools across the province.

In this respect, the School Education Department (SED) filed a plan, which was accepted by the provincial cabinet on Monday.

Ghulam Fareed, the education department's secretary, informed that existing Arabic teachers are being educated to teach the Holy Quran in public schools, while new positions for grades 1 to 5 have been created.

In December 2020, the Lahore High Court (LHC) ordered that the Holy Quran be taught to all students. The move was made in response to the Punjab Compulsory Teaching of the Holy Quran Act of 2018.

In addition, a division bench of the LHC is hearing an appeal in this case.

During the case's session, an official from the education department told the high court that in the first phase, they were training 70,000 Arabic language teachers.

Last Monday, the official informed the court that "an additional 60,000 Arabic teachers are required in the province." The hearing was postponed until January 3rd.

The SED had issued directions earlier this year for district school administrators to examine all schools in their areas, both public and private schools, as well as madrasahs, to confirm that the Holy Quran was being taught as a separate topic.

Following this, authorities in Nankana Sahib recommended disciplinary action against three school principals for teaching the Holy Quran incorrectly.