Khyber Medical University students strike

KMU students observe token strike
Peshawar, March 26: The students of the Institute of Public Health & Social Sciences, Khyber Medical University (KMU), have observed a token strike to press for the acceptance of their demands.

A statement issued by the class representative Dr Lakhkar Khan Abrar said the students had launched token strike from Wednesday. He said they were the first batch of students doing postgraduate in the Public Health at the KMU but deplored that despite repeated demands and requests, their problems remained unresolved for the last 14 months, since the commencement of the classes. He said the students had been paid only one installment of the stipend while two installments were still awaited.

He added that the library at the facility had no reference books and journals while demanding that the facility should be upgraded as soon as possible."Our classrooms are short of space compared with the strength of the students and the multimedia remained out of order most of the time," he said, adding that the situation had been brought into the notice of the KMU administration but no action was taken in this regard. The news

Post your comments

School dropout rate alarming in GB
Gilgit: The rate of dropouts in government-run schools is alarming in Gilgit-Baltistan.

Recent statistics released by the Education Management Information Centre claimed that the dropout rate at primary level among boys was 11 per cent and girls 8 per cent which was further increasing. The dropout was mainly due to poverty, migration of families and mismanagement of schools.

The statistics said that there were 1,688 functional academic institutions including the National Education Programme and community-based schools.

Of them 1,299 schools were primary and 237 schools were middle while the strength of high schools was 150.

The total enrolment at all levels was 155,959 out of which 30,666 pre-primary, 85,756 primary and 28,285 at middle. The enrolment recorded at high level was 10,936 and 316 at higher secondary level.

Number of teachers in government primary schools was 2,613 and the gender classification was given as 1,513 were male and 1,100 were females. At middle level, the number of teachers were 1,455 and out of them male were 994 and remaining 461 were female.

The total strength of teachers at high schools was 1,897 out of them 1,485 were male and 412 female. Dawn

Post your comments

Unemployment lead youth to terrorism
Islamabad: Pakistan is a land of opportunities and its youth have all the potential to pull the country out of uncertainty, provided they are given a bit of guidance and direction.

This was the message highlighted by the speakers at the inauguration ceremony of a two-day Business Ideas & Job Expo 2010 organised by the Jang Media Group and Tehzeeb Pakistan.

Aimed at interacting with future entrepreneurs and inspire them to initiate new and innovative business ideas, the colourful and informative exhibition provided a tremendous opportunity to youth to be in touch with new opportunities and latest industry trends.

The inauguration ceremony was attended by a large number of students and parents, who considered it a good opportunity to learn from the experiences of those who have already acquired success in their fields. "The future of Pakistan is in the hands of youth," said the chief guest, MNA and Chairman Standing Committee on Economic Affairs Division Malik Azmat Khan.

He said it is the economic deprivation and scarcity of employment opportunities that lead the youth of Malakand Division and tribal areas into anti-state activities. He said the government is working on a comprehensive plan to generate employment opportunities for the youth belonging to those areas. "The government cannot succeed in its plans until civil society and the general public join these efforts at every level," he pointed out.

He said ideas such as the Business Ideas & Job Expo 2010 could be very helpful in involving the general public in development activities. "Giving a positive direction to the energies of youth that constitute a major portion of the country's population is the biggest challenge faced by the present government," he said urging the civil society and media to promote entrepreneurship among the youth to control the increasing rate of unemployment.

Secretary Ministry of Trade & Commerce Shahid Rahim Shiekh said the youth today have ample opportunities to explore and exploit, and they should not limit themselves to traditional fields. "Linking the young talent to industrial needs is the responsibility of the leaders in commerce, trade, business and education," he added.

Chancellor Preston University Dr Abdul Basit said in order to make rapid progress, it is vital to bridge the gap between academics and industry. Due to rapid growth in the global market, he said the job structure keeps on changing and such exhibitions actually link the students with the changing trends. He mentioned that entrepreneurs are change makers and suggested that the public sector and the chambers of commerce and industry across the country should integrate with the career counselling sections of colleges and universities for the identification and encouragement of young entrepreneurs. "New and innovative ideas should also be provided with essential financial assistance," he said.

Basit urged the government to re-establish the Nano Technology Commission that was formed four years ago but was closed due to lack of funds. He said the future economy of any country depends upon nano technology. "This is the right time to invest in this field, as the whole world is focusing on this new technology to save their future."

President Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce & Industry Kashif Shabir said economic recession is a worldwide phenomenon and every country is trying its best to find its way to recovery. "In our case, it is the lack of concern and planning among the related deportments that is worrisome," he added. The young leader said that 70 per cent of the country's economy is based on agriculture but there is hardly any agro-based industry in Pakistan.

He said there was a time when Pakistan ruled the sports products in the world. "We lost our standing in the international market in this field only because of the lack of interest in research and development," he pointed out. "We never tried to analyse the changing trends in the market and never focused on branding our products."

Director General Water Conservation Capital Development Authority Sanaullah Aman said with the collaboration of university students, the CDA is running an awareness campaign to preserve water. He said in Islamabad, 50 percent of water is wasted because of leakages, illegal connections and carelessness on the consumers' end.

He said CDA plans to upgrade the whole system of the capital's water supply and for that, the Authority has hired international consultants and companies. "To secure water supply from River Indus, the Authority plans to lay a 45km pipeline with the help of international companies," he said adding that it would ensure smooth supply of water to the capital residents till 2050.

General Manager Sales & Marketing Jang Group Syed Amjad Ali and Managing Director HR Consultants Hamid Rauf also spoke on the occasion. The news

Post your comments