By 
23-01-2026 | Dominik Miklósi | Asia Researcher, Global Human Rights Defence.
A 2021 recruitment policy in Pakistan has seen public concern over the years due to its unfair geographical differentiation between prospective teachers at elementary and primary school levels. The implemented initiative created two sets, notably hard and soft areas within the Sindh Province, and introduced separate passing criteria for candidates based on their area of residence.
The Government of Sindh Province, in Pakistan, introduced a policy, that distinguishes between hard and soft areas in the context of primary school teachers’ (PST) and junior elementary school teachers’ (JEST) recruitment. Overall, a 40 percent threshold was established in the test for all candidates to become teachers. However, the passing grade for candidates from hard areas in the recruitment process has been lowered to 33 percent, thereby creating a geographically discriminatory two-tier system in the Pakistani province. For those who are from hard areas and just fell short of the passing grade on the test, the government has also given “grace marks”, adding 1 extra point to reach the threshold. Beyond that, in several instances, many candidates who came from soft areas and received between 33 and 39 percent on the exam were denied the opportunity to pursue a career in teaching. Additionally, women and minorities faced a significantly elevated, 50 percent threshold in the selection process.
The hiring policy was implemented in 2021, and, since then, has faced backlash from the public. More than 600 candidates who were adversely affected by the initiative challenged it through a collective petition. Moreover, the petitioners claimed that the Sindh Government and Sukkur IBA University “intentionally designed the test and inserted wrong questions or added more than one correct answer in the multiple-choice questions to fail aspiring teachers at the behest of political leaders of the ruling political party”.
A unified passing grade must be established and secured to promote the basic human right to equal opportunity for all candidates. Marginalising teacher aspirants in the educational system based on their geographical origin is an unfair and discriminatory practice.
