15,000 students & IG Office | PU students excel

15,000 students in vicinity of IG Office: Schools unprotected as IG tightens security net
Lahore, June 06: The security at the office of the Inspector General of Police, Punjab has been increased in light of the recent suicide bombing on the Rescue 15 office, but the government has yet to make any move to protect the more than 15,000 students at the nearby educational institutions in the area.

The IG Office is located in a densely populated area and is adjacent to several educational institutes that lack any armed guards or policemen for security. Due to the security risk, barricades have been used to block the side roads leading to the IG Office, troubling the general public and making the students' commute more difficult.

Earlier, after an attack on a security agency's office in Model Town, residents had protested to shift such offices outside the residential areas. The Interior Ministry had also given instructions that the offices of such security agencies should not be located in the residential and populated areas.

Roughly 15,000 students are believed to be studying in educational institutes located near the IG Office including the Cathedral Higher Secondary School, University of Education's Women Campus, the National College of Arts (NCA), the Punjab University Old Campus, Government College University (GCU), Hailey College of Commerce and MAO College. While most of the institutions are currently closed due to summer vacations, some still have classes in progress.

Though these institutions have their own security guards, they are not adequately trained to handle terrorists, nor are they armed. However, in light of the threat, some institutions have endeavoured to enact their own security measures. NCA has placed barbed wire on its outer boundary and no outsider is allowed entry into the institute without appointment. GCU has also put some barricades in front of its main gate, while the PU's main gate has been closed for general use. The PU has already issued instructions to the students asking them to carry their university cards at all times, and no one without identification is allowed entry.

Given if asked: Superintendent of Police (Security) Imran Ahmar said that the government would provide these institutions with security if they asked for it. He said the SPs concerned had held meetings with the administration of the education institutions and asked them to improve their security. He conceded that while security agencies were the target of most terrorists, police had managed to strengthen the entire city's security. "As far as the education institutions are concerned, most of them are closed due to summer vacations so there isn't any need for added security," he added. Daily Times

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Punjab University students excel
Lahore: The Punjab University students of Department of Electronics & Telecommunication have shown outstanding performance in Pakistan Student Congress and NUST Olympiad 2009.

The event was organized by National University of Science & Technology (NUST), Islamabad, on May 30-31.

In Speed Wiring Competition, the PU students' team comprising Salman Tahir and Nauman Haider and another team comprising Muhammad Amar and Osama Tahir clinched first and third positions respectively.

In Circuit Design Competition, students' team comprising Fahad Raza and Naveed Shahzad won third position.

Students' teams of National University of Science & Technology (NUST) Islamabad, College of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering Rawalapindi, Government College University Faisalabad, University of Engineering & Technology Taxila, FAST Karachi, FAST Islamabad, Islamic International University Islamabad, Government College University Lahore and Air University Islamabad participated in the two-day event.

PU reviews issues
Lahore: A Meeting of the Punjab University New Campus Management Committee, held on Friday, reviewed the cases of administrative affairs of the committee, repairing of faculty members' houses, meter reading, roads infrastructure improvement, budget estimate for repairing of houses and other issues.

Dean Faculty of Science Prof Dr Jamil Anwar Chaudhry chaired the meeting at New Campus.

Meanwhile, PU Social Work Department's students called on Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Mujahid Kamran and thanked him for providing education-friendly environment and timely declaration of their results.

Students said the result of MA social work was declared very soon and it also had very good pass percentage.

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Punjab recruiting 34,000 teachers on merit: Shahbaz
Lahore: Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has said the government is implementing a strategy for economic development of the province and provision of basic amenities to the masses while various policies are being formulated for this purpose.

Addressing a meeting regarding medium-term strategy for economic growth here on Friday, Mr Shahbaz said 34,000 teachers were being recruited on merit in the province while provision of missing facilities in schools was also being ensured. He said the government was determined to purge the examination system of the Booti mafia and practical measures were being taken in this regard, adding that the Booti mafia was rooted out during his last tenure and it would be eliminated again.

The chief minister said the government was taking measures for the uplift of the education sector and examination system was also being made transparent. The government was giving priority to the provision of education, health, water supply and other facilities to the masses and such projects would be given due importance in the next budget, he maintained.

Mr Shahbaz said provincial secretaries would have to work in the field instead of sitting in their offices for ensuring complete implementation of the measures for welfare of the masses, efficiency of the government departments and solution to public problems.

He said 70 people of the province were associated with the agriculture sector and they were playing a vital role in meeting the food requirements of the country. He said agriculture was the backbone of the national economy, however, reliance on agriculture was possible only if the agri-economy was developed through solid measures. He said export of agri products to the Middle East and other countries could result in earning huge foreign exchange.

Mr Shahbaz said that despite the lack of natural resources, Japan and Korea had made remarkable progress in all the sectors through development of human resource. He said developing human resource and producing experts in different sectors were necessary for speedy progress of Punjab. He said there was no shortage of resources but commitment and dedication were needed to utilise them. Efforts of the government could not yield results unless officers and departments concerned performed their duties with a sense of responsibility, he said, adding that there was a need for promotion of science, research and knowledge. Earlier, Khalid Ikram gave a detailed briefing regarding progress of the province and submitted recommendations for the development of irrigation, livestock, infrastructure, health, human resources, education and economy of the province.

Punjab chief secretary, planning and development chairman, livestock secretary, privatization board deputy chairman as well as officers concerned and experts were present.

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Teachers warn of strike
Lahore: Punjab Teachers Union (PTU) has warned if the government did not accept their demands in the coming budget they would establish permanent hunger strike camp outside the Punjab Assembly. In a press statement issued on Friday the PTU office bearers including Ch Tanvir Farooq, Zahid Abbas and others said schoolteachers had been working in similar scales for the last 20 years. They demanded the Chief Minister announce special incentive package for teachers in the coming budget so that they might perform their duties with dedication. The News

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IUB may go for FIR against students
Bahawalpur: The Islamia University Bahawalpur (IUB) administration may get a case registered against what it tags "troublemaker students".

It was learnt on Friday that for the time being the administration was gleaning evidence against the 16 students it claimed to have identified as troublemakers. It has also called the parents of the students to warn them and seek guarantees about the pupils' conduct in future.

Some administration officials are learnt to have been conducting inquiries to have solid proof of their (students') involvement in clash with security guards.

It is also learnt that instead of initiating an independent inquiry by the university itself into the June 2 incident in which, according to eyewitnesses, the students on strike defended themselves against assault by the security guards, the administration is grilling the student leaders.

As for the university's semester examinations' schedule, there is no likelihood that after the re-opening of the university on Monday after five-day undeclared closure that the students could take the papers on June 8. Nor will the teachers be in a position to conduct the examinations in all the departments in the wake of tension on all the three campuses.

The IUB examination branch is expected to announce a new examination schedule.

Meanwhile, special university squads were seen erasing the wall-chalking against the vice-chancellor in many parts of the city. Dawn

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GCU workshop
Lahore: The Career Guidance and Placement Centre of the Government College University (GCU) organized a workshop on "Resume Writing" for the final year students of BA/BSc 4-Year (Hons) degree programme on Friday.

The one-day training workshop was organized to equip students with the skills required for preparing their resumes, particularly to enhance the communication and resume writing skills for the final year students.

A standard format was provided to the students in the 2-hour long special session.

Placement Officer of GCU Muhammad Waqar Ahmad provided useful tips to the students to participate in the job/career fairs.

Around one hundred and fifty students from the departments of Chemistry, Biotechnology, Microbiology, Environmental Science, Zoology, Business Accounting & Finance, Economics, Statistics, Psychology, Political Science and English participated in the workshop.

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Certificate distribution at UVAS
Lahore: A certificate distribution ceremony of one-month community livestock extension workers training programme under the Prime Minister's Special Initiative for Livestock was held on Ravi Campus of the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at Pattoki on Friday. According to a press statement, Punjab Rural Support Programme Sahiwal Regional General Manager Malik Niaz Hussain asked the trainees to use their knowledge to mobilize local communities to get better results in the livestock sector. The News

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