Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has ordered new safety regulations for private schools, days after a classroom roof collapse in Peshawar killed dozens of pupils and staff.
The provincial authorities have directed the Private Schools Regulatory Authority (PSRA) to prepare comprehensive safety rules for private educational institutions, with the protection of students as the stated priority.
The proposed regulations will cover the structural safety of school buildings, compliance with building codes and regular safety inspections.
They will also set limits on the number of pupils allowed in each classroom, include measures to prevent overcrowding, and require emergency exits and evacuation procedures.
The authority has been told to prepare the draft in consultation with relevant technical institutions, so that the standards rest on professional engineering advice rather than paperwork alone.
The PSRA must submit the draft regulations and its recommendations to the Education Department within seven days.
The move follows the collapse at a private school in Peshawar’s Dir Colony area earlier this week, which killed dozens of children and staff and left 52 people injured. Police have since arrested the school’s owner, and an FIR has been registered against the owners and the builder.
Separately, the province has set up district-level committees to inspect private school buildings across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and report within three days, classifying each building as safe, in need of repairs, or potentially unsafe, with unsafe premises to be closed or restricted.
The collapse has intensified scrutiny of school buildings across the province, with officials saying buildings found to present an immediate danger must be reported to district authorities without delay.
