KU evening programme admissions | HEC students scholarships

Admission to Masters courses in Evening Programme
Karachi, June 01: The Directorate of Evening Programme (DEP) of the University of Karachi (KU) has announced the admissions for Masters Courses in Evening Programme 2009-10. According to a press statement issued here on Sunday, the admissions would start from Tuesday, June 2 for M.S, two-year Masters and Diploma Programmess.

Admission forms will be issued from June 2 to 10, 2009 at the UBL Silver Jubilee Gate and the list of successful candidates will be announced on June 22. Claims form will be issued from June 22 to 24 and claim list will be displayed at the DEP on June 26, 2009. The fees will be collected from June 24 to 26, 2009 at the directorate while the classes will start on July 1, 2009.

The programme offers subjects like Applied Physics (with specialisation in Electronics), Criminological Sciences, Mass Communication, Petroleum Technology, Public Administration and others. The press statement adds that the HRM and MBA (Banking and Finance) will be a special attraction for professionals, while the MBA admissions will be given on passing the aptitude test that would be held at the Institute of Bankers Pakistan (IBP) on June 14, 2009 at 11:00 a.m.

The several Postgraduate Diploma programmes include Industrial and Organisational Psychology, Local Government and Quranic Arabic language. The Director of Evening Programme, Prof. Dr M Abuzar Wajidi has said that these courses will help professionals enhance their skills and qualification while adding that the fee structure is quite affordable and more subsidised than any other university.

Submission of M.Phil, PhD exam fees
Karachi: All M.Phil and Ph.D. students of the University of Karachi (KU) Faculty of Science, who are enrolled in Research Methodology (ASR-702) have been directed to submit the examination fee of Rs200 by June 2 without late fee.

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Students scholarships in limbo as HEC dithers
Karachi: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) is yet to adopt any vigorous or meaningful measure to solve the financial problems of universities and those students who have been denied trip abroad to join their respective universities due to lack of funds. The United States has agreed to provide 4 million dollars to the HEC to expand its financial programme. It is anticipated that the funds would provide relief to the students in getting their scholarships.

In a separate development, the HEC has issued guidelines to curb sexual harassment, exploitation and intimidation in institutions of higher education. A 31-page draft policy says sexual harassment is a reality that occurs in classrooms, offices, research laboratories and Higher Education Institutions' (HEI) environment.

Meanwhile, Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) has demanded that the government should appoint a PhD professor with university teaching experience as the HEC chairman. The demand was made in a recently held meeting in Lahore that also asked HEC to stop interfering in the university affairs. FAPUASA also demanded that the posts of a Governor and a University Chancellor should be separated as universities are facing increasing problems due to the political role of governors. It also demanded the posting of serving professors of the university as vice chancellors. The meeting specifically mentioned the 80-year old superannuated Vice Chancellor (VC) of Sindh University, and asked the government to remove him immediately.

University of Karachi (KU) Syndicate has eventually decided to act against three plagiarists. However, the teachers, especially from the Faculty of Islamic Studies (of Prof. Jalaluddin Noori fame), contend that Prof. Noori has a trail of deceitful dealings, fake degrees and other activities that hardly conform to the standard of a teacher of higher education. "I think the VC should find an honourable departure for Prof. Noori, as it confounds common sense that how a person with charges of plagiarism, counterfeiting and deceit (all proved) could be sitting at such a place without being checked by the university."

Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science & Technology (FUUAST) has been showing some activities by holding seminars, conferences and publishing books recently. It seems that after all the university "is trying to wriggle out of its college concern." Some teachers are of the opinion that the VC Dr Muhammad Qaiser means business and the university might be able to prove is merit after all.

Jinnah University for Women (JUW), the first women institution of higher learning, is also taking great strides in educational, research and extracurricular activities. Despite meagre resources and lack of funds from other sources due to recessionary trends, the university is performing quite well. Recently, its students won laurels on the Earth Day Programme Debate on a private channel by producing the best speeches.

Prime Minister (PM) Yousuf Raza Gilani recently met the vice chancellors of public sector universities to discuss the financial crunch there. He assured the VCs that his government would help the universities to come out of the financial crisis but advised them to tighten their belts and try to generate their own funds – at least part of the total budget. The VCs were in agreement. Let us wait and see if the message from the PM really registered with them.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) also recently invited the VCs of the province in the Sindh Assembly to discuss various matters, especially power consumption by universities. The PAC said that universities staff were sent nominal electricity charges and the staff wasted power. The Committee suggested installing metres for individuals to bill them properly, and plug the wastage. -perwez.abdullah@thenews.com.pk (The News)

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SSUET to start free courses for special children
Karachi: Chancellor Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology, Z. A. Nizmi has said that special children are the nation's strength and asset and he disagrees to the term special children used for retarded kids.

"Instead I love to call them 'sweet kids for they, to him, have the same potential and talent like other normal people in the society", he said while speaking as chief guest at the Louise Braille awards distribution ceremony held at SSUET auditorium.

The ceremony was organised in collaboration with magazine "Special Children" to promote self-esteem, independence and self-determination in the retarded children. Nizami elaborated that this is for the first time in Pakistan that Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology is planning to educate special children in different sections of engineering. For this purpose, SSUET has specifically designed certain courses and programmes for special children which have been approved by the prestigious universities of USA.

They would get free education at the University, he announced The true essence of the Louis Braille Awards, he said, was to convince the special children that they could achieve anything that they want to do anything that a sighted person could do.

Amber Raza Nancy, a former Caretaker Sindh Minister for Culture, Tourism and Sports, in her speech demanded that TV channels should design and present programmes for special children.

Obaidullah, Senior Executive PNSC was of the view that special children have the ability to do each and every thing like a normal human being.

Shaista Abbas, Income Tax Commissioner, while speaking on the occasion said, "I am mother of a special child, but I always emphasise on one thing that I am a special mother, not my child." She maintained, "Special children are like a real pearl which is never round, it has rough edges."

According to Hanif Sheikh, Administrator Pakistan Eye Bank, disability was not inability.

After the round of speeches, special children presented an admirable music programme to show their skill of singing and enthralled the audience by their jazzy performance. The event was concluded with presentation of awards to Dr Farzana Suleman, Jamila Begum, Safdar Ali Najmi, Professor Ghulam Fareed, Anjum Yousuf, Muzaffar Ali Qureshi, Salim Qureshi, Rahatullah Pakistani, Ali Akbar Amrohi and Hafiz Nasim Uddin in recognition of their indefatigable work and valuable services for the welfare and benefits of special children. App

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CS seeks report against private schools fees
Karachi: Chief Secretary (CS) Sindh, Fazalur Rehman while taking note of parents' complaints against private schools has instructed secretary education to furnish report within a week for increase in fee of private schools, illegally taking fee for two months during summer holidays. The CS said that private schools were charging fee for summer holidays, which was violation of rules and "could not be tolerated." The parents in their letter to the CS said that substandard quality eatables were being provided at canteens of private schools whose rate was also high as compared to the market price. Besides syllabus books, note books and other goods including uniform were of low quality and were being provided at higher rates. The News

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Privatisation of edu institutions opposed
Karachi: After the deterioration of education in public schools, now the education in government colleges is being targeted to promote private institutions in the city.

Use of unfair means in the colleges is a great conspiracy against such institutions in the province while the future of around 6,00,000 students, studying in the public colleges in Sindh, is at the stake. Capitalists, running business in the education sector, in association with corrupt politicians and bureaucrats of Sindh Education Department are trying to target the college teachers by adding their service problems so that the education at private colleges can be encouraged. These views were expressed by central leaders of Sindh Professors and Lecturers Association (SPLA), while talking to The Nation on Sunday.

SPLA central leader Professor Ather Hussain Mirza said that the colleges in the province had become vulnerable due to negligence of authorities concerned; similarly the college teachers were suffering with low salaries and low job security, despite the role of the teachers in uplifting the society. He said, "At the time of the partition (1947) there were only four colleges in the province, including SM Science College, DJ Sindh Government Science College, Govt College Hyderabad Kalimore, and Govt C & S College Skiharpur. Now the province has 248 public colleges out which 124 colleges are situated only in the metropolis. Government colleges have great reputation as compare to schools, but corrupt elements wanted to promote private college education in the province. The colleges teachers are considered as the major hurdle and stumbling block in term of privatising the colleges; that is why they are being targeting and deprived of basic service rights, including health insurance, job confirmation, housing project, up-gradation and increase in salaries.

Talking about the use of unfair means, he alleged that corruption was deliberately introduced in 1972 on community basis to defame education in the government colleges, while at the outset Hindu Community had spent huge funds to get cleared their students in the examinations. It is pertinent to mention here that the cheating mafia, backed by some students' political wings, has threatened the teachers of some colleges for dire consequences during the currently held HSC examinations.

Assistant Prof Yaqoob Chandio said that Sindh Education Department was giving priority to junior over senior teachers, as in the majority colleges of Sindh. Junior teachers are working as in-charge principal, which is contrary to the service laws, he said, adding that college education was being targeted deliberately as 80 per cent colleges in the province are working under the supervision of junior teachers. The Nation

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Progressive student leader remembered
Karachi: Tributes were paid on Sunday to a pioneering former student leader, Dr Mohammad Sarwar, who struggled for the rights of students, workers and the downtrodden masses.

Friends and admirers of the late Dr Sarwar belonging to different walks of life, including law, engineering, literature and the fine arts, spoke of their association with the late general practitioner at a meeting organised by the Pakistan Medical Association at the PMA House.

Former Sindh Governor Fakhruddin G. Ebrahim, who as a young lawyer had defended Dr Sarwar and many of his comrades in the 1950s, said that Dr Sarwar founded the Democratic Students Union in the early 1950s because he felt students adopted the "politics of idealism", and he also created a body that linked all students in other educational institutions in the city together, so that "principled politics could be strengthened in the newly born country".

Unfortunately, however, first the DSF was banned and then succeeding governments banned student unions altogether for many years, Mr Ebrahim said.

He said that the "old leadership has failed and it is high time that a new leadership, believing in high ideals, emerges to lead the country and bring justice to society. He said equal rights for all must be ensured.

Mairaj Mohammad Khan said that Dr Sarwar was a "true progressive", having a broad minded and secular way of thought, he "respected religion but was against this kind of interpretation of religion under which women were lashed and people were beheaded".

Dr Jaffer Naqvi said that people could have a discussion with Dr Sarwar for hours and while they may continue to disagree with him, he would always listen attentively and was so tolerant that would never get angry or raise his voice.

In an interesting revelation, Arif Hassan said that the government had originally prepared a master plan of the city in 1951, with the proposed federal government buildings located opposite the university. When the DSF brought students into politics, however, and took to agitations and protests against the government, voices were heard in cabinet meetings calling for a change in the proposals, to relocate the federal government buildings. Eventually, he said, Ayub Khan moved the federal government apparatus over 1,000 kilometres away.

Aziz Tank, Samreen Hashmi, Badar Siddiqui and others also spoke while Arshad Mehmood, Tina Sani and Atiya Dawood recited poetry. A few documentaries on interviews and discussions with Dr Sarwar were also screened. Dawn

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