DRIVING TEST: Recently, the traffic police in Rawalpindi has restricted the use of any car with factory-fitted tinted window-panes when people appear for their driving test. It is worth mentioning that most imported vehicles are installed with tinted window-panes. The officials conducting the test make available old cars with manual transmission for the test. Someone who has learned driving with automatic transmission would natu-rally be unable to use a car with manual transmission during the test. The relevant authorities should look into the matter and review the decision. It is frustrating that while federal and provincial gover-nments continue to talk about austerity and simplicity, they do not seem to think twice before spending billions of rupees of taxpayers’ money on sustaining the luxurious lifestyle of the power elite, including bureaucrats. In fact, the decision of the Sindh government to purchase 138 luxury vehicles for assistant commissioners across the province is a case in point. Had it not been for the stay order issued by the Sindh High Court (SHC), the purchase would have been executed already. One wonders when our politicians will actually grow up and behave like they should. On can only hope. Despite being qualified individuals, private school teachers receive meagre salaries. School managements charge hefty fee from the parents, but treat their teachers as personal servants, paying them nothing more than a few thousand rupees. Many teachers get less than half of the amount designated by the government as the minimum wage. I started my career as a teacher recently, and I am unable to find an institution that can pay a reasonable amount or at least the official minimum wage. The government should look into the matter seriously, and take steps to ensure that school administrations pay proper salaries to all their teachers.