Private students application forms

Private students plea, Board directed to receive application forms
Rawalpindi, Dec 23: The Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi bench, here on Tuesday directed the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) to receive the application forms by private students who wanted to appear in the science subjects in the annual examination of secondary school certificate (SSC).

Justice Asad Munir in his interim order in the petition of All Pakistan Private Schools Management Association Rawalpindi chapter said all private students should be allowed to submit their forms till the final outcome of the petition.

Making secretary education Punjab and chairman, secretary and controller examination of the board as respondents, association divisional president Abrar Ahmed through his lawyer Malik Asif Toufiq challenged the notification issued on November 11 by the BISE secretary that had barred the private candidates from appearing in practical examination of science subjects.

The petitioner said the association had about 66,000 private schools as its members in Punjab where about 600,000 students were getting education and it would be discrimination on the part of the board if they were not allowed to sit in the examination.

The petition also questioned the policy of the education department what it called suppressing the science education. They said the ban on private candidates was deferred every year in the past but this year it was not done, forcing the students to approach the court.

It may be motioned here that in an identical petition on December 17, the court had granted relief to 20 petitioner students and the BISE Rawalpindi was receiving their application forms.

Post your comments

Rs100m grant for Cadet College Hassanabdal
Taxila: Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Shairf on Tuesday announced a grant of Rs100 million for carrying out maintenance and development projects in the Cadet College Hassanabdal.

He announced the grant while speaking at 56th 'Parents Day' function at the college. The chief minister said annual grant of the college would be also be increased from Rs20 million to Rs40 million.

He awarded 12 medals and 104 certificates to the cadets. Cadet Tanzilur Rehman was declared as cadet of the year. Best sportsman of the year medal was awarded to Cadet Ali Abbass.

On the occasion, the cadets performed various athletics, PT shows, gymnastics, horse riding and participated in tent pegging competition and drew applause from the audience.

The chief minister said the provincial government in one-and-half-year inducted as many as 37,000 teachers in the educational institutions on merit, besides establishing 4,200 IT labs in all schools of Punjab at a cost of Rs4 billion in 10 months.

Now, students from Attock to Rahim Yar Khan have been connected to internet and they can download their favorite books and read international newspapers on the net, he maintained.

He said the government had set up Punjab Education Endowment Fund with an allocation of Rs4 billion for giving stipends to deserving students, adding that out of this fund five per cent quota had been reserved for the deserving students of other three provinces.

He said Danish schools were being established in the rural areas to provide better educational facilities to the talented youth of these areas. According to him, for the first time in the history of Punjab students were being given cash prizes and sent abroad for higher education.

The chief minister said toppers in the boards were sent to England for the study tour and they would also be sent to Germany and other countries for study in future, so they could become well-trained human resource for the country.

In his welcome address, college Principal Prof Arif Malik highlighted achievements of the college.

Earlier, the chief minister said a "specific lobby" was speaking against the verdict of Supreme Court on NRO. He said the same lobby had also questioned the verdict of the apex court to fix sugar prices at Rs40 per kg.

He said the dictators in the past had taken the country on the verge of destruction while every body, including politicians, generals and bureaucracy, had ignored peoples' rights. He said Pakistan was lagging behind in education sector compared to other countries of South Asia, adding that it was not the country that Allama Iqbal and Quaid-i-Azam dreamt of. Dawn

Post your comments

Special children institutions grant
Rawalpindi: Hassan Academy for Special Children Principal, Dr. Ahmad Hassan on Tuesday appealed to the government to patronise educational institutions for physically and hearing impaired children being run by private sector and allocate special grants for them.

Talking to teachers and parents and monthly meeting of Hassan Academy of Special Children held here, he said the financial assistance from the government would help these institutions to educate the special children in a better way.

He said that physically and hearing impaired children at his institution are being imparted education in a friendly environment.

Dr. Ahmed Hassan said as many as 200 special children are getting education along with normal children at his academy. He said his academy is demonstrating best performance in very limited sources.

He said that his academy needs an audiometer and a vehicle for transportation and asked the philanthropists to come forward and help in this noble cause.

Post your comments

New schools project
Islamabad: Saudi Public Assistance for Pakistan Earthquake Victims (SPAPEV) Regional Director Dr Khalid M Al-Othmani has said that work on 8,000 houses, 28 girls and boys schools and seven basic health units (BHUs) being built by (SPAPEV) is near completion.

Addressing a press conference here Tuesday, Dr Khalid said that Saudi Arabia came to help Pakistan soon after October 8 2005 earthquake, which destroyed hospitals, schools, houses, government and private buildings in Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and the NWFP and took part in relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction activities in the calamity-hit areas.

He said that project of building 28 schools including five government secondary and high schools is in process of completion in Rawalakot, Muzaffarabad, and Bagh areas. He said that 23 schools after construction had been given to the authorities of Read Foundation for starting the academic activities in the Azad Jammu and Kashmir besides provision of all essential items including sets of uniform, bags, books, and other material to the students.

Post your comments

NLP Chinese books
Islamabad: Chinese Cultural Counsellor Yang Linhai Tuesday donated 800 books for the National Library of Pakistan (NLP), covering a wide range of subjects on Chinese culture, arts, medicines, religions and other related topics.

Yang Linhai handed over these books to acclaimed fiction writer and Director General Department of Libraries Mazharul Islam, who appreciated the Chinese dignitary's gesture and said the books would prove a valuable addition to the library's collection of books.

"From these books, our library users will be able to learn more about the culture, art and other subjects of Pakistan's great friend.

These books will also help our scholars in their research work and studies about China," he said.

Mazharul Islam expressed his gratitude to the cultural counsellor and said the gift would further enhance the existing friendly relations between the two nations.

Chinese counsellor on the occasion visited various sections of the library and showed keen interest in books displayed there.

Post your comments

Storyboard contest result
Rawalpindi: Students of Communication Sciences Department at Fatima Jinnah Women University (FJWU) brought honour for the university by winning the first prize in 'Storyboard Competition' recently.

The competition was organised at Al-Hamra Arts Council, Lahore, on the topic 'International Day of Violence against Women' and was conducted by Women Protection Project, Punjab in collaboration with the Department of Social Welfare, Women Development, Bait-ul-Maal Punjab and the German Technical Cooperation.

Mrs Moneeza Hashmi, Ms Arfa Syeda, Mrs Saleema Hashmi, and Adeel Hashmi were amongst the jury members while top universities from all over the country participated in the event.

Students of Masters of Communication Sciences IV - Maryam Ali Chaudhry, Fatima Naseer and Madiha Nazir - got first position in the category of Storyboard Competition and got a cash prize of Rs20,000.

Another group from the same class comprising Ayesha Dilshad, Maleeha Masood and Faiza Hussain got the trophy as a reward for special recognition, as their idea was well appreciated by the judges.

Another student of FJWU, Shamsa Arooj, got the honour of getting her work displayed on the occasion. The news

Post your comments

Lecture on food crisis
Islamabad: A lecture was organised here on Tuesday under the auspices of International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) on 'Food Crisis and Future of Agriculture in Pakistan'.

Dr Mehmood Hassan Khan, professor at Simon Fraser University Canada, delivered the lecture. Dr Anwar Hussain Siddique, IIUI President, was chief guest on the occasion.

The speaker noted that the food crisis was a global phenomenon and not confined to any region or country. However, it is worsening in Pakistan with each passing day, he observed.

"The crisis pose a serious danger to the very existence of human life in Pakistan. According to the economic indicators, Pakistan is confronted with inflation and shortage of essential commodities," he said.

Khan added that the crisis required immediate policy shifts including introduction of safety nets and provision of subsidies. He said that Pakistan's economy showed all major indicators of progress. Daily times

Post your comments