HEC to adjust students of Swat, Buner & Dir | QAU rejects incentives

HEC steps in to adjust displaced students
Islamabad, May 14:: All the Pakistani universities will collectively mobilise all possible resources to help out internally displaced persons (IDPs) belonging to militancy-hit Swat, Buner and Dir and accommodate the University of Malakand (UoM) students.

Vice-chancellors (VCs) of provincially chartered universities and heads of degree-awarding institutes decided this on Wednesday when they met at the Higher Education Commission (HEC) headquarters through an E-conference. Expressing an absolute solidarity with the NWFP IDPs, they vowed not to leave the militancy-affected people in the lurch.

The HEC announced establishment of an IDP Welfare Auditable Account to receive contributions. The leaderships of the universities also committed their one-day salary to the account. The meeting decided that the HEC Headquarters and its Peshawar regional centre would act as focal points for putting in a coordinated effort to assist the IDPs.

The meeting agreed on making temporarily arrangements to adjust all the UoM students to different Peshawar-based universities with an aim to ensure continuity of their studies. Islamia College University, Peshawar, promised full-fledged accommodation for the UoM students. The meeting said the internally displaced students would be exempted from tuition and hostel fees and subsistence allowance offered to them.

The meeting participants also offered free accommodation to the displaced students in their respective universities. At the end, they urged the higher education sector to continue playing an effective role in contributing towards the IDPs' welfare and the country's prosperity. Daily Times

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QAU Academic Staff Association rejects incentives
Islamabad: Rejecting the decision of the QAU syndicate regarding the Basic Pay Scale (BPS) Incentives to only 25 percent professors, the Academic Staff Association of Quaid-i-Azam University (QAU) has decided to give a strike call if their demands are not met.

The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of the executive council of the Academic Staff Association (ASA) held on Tuesday wherein after thorough discussion, the members unanimously decided to put their demands to the university administration for an immediate solution.

The house categorically rejected the 25 percent restriction to receive the BPS incentive and demanded that all those who meet the criteria approved by Syndicate must be awarded the incentive. They also urged that the contract appointments of faculty members, who have passed through all the steps of regular selection process for BPS, must be regularized. They also called for awarding next personal grades to the faculty members who fall in hardship category as adopted by other public sector universities.

If the above demands are not met by Saturday, May 16, the faculty will go for a complete strike wearing black bands and holding demonstration etc. on Monday onward, the committee resolved.

The house also constituted a twelve-member Action Committee for demonstration and protest comprising of the following faculty members Dr. M. Gulraiz Akhtar (Coordinator), Dr. Asif Ali (Coordinator) Dr. Hassan Mehmood, Dr. Wasim Ahmad, Dr. Zulfiqar Ahmad, Dr. Salman A. Malik, Dr. Muhammad Ishaq, Dr. Waheed Iqbal, Mr. Mehmood-ul Hasan Butt, Mr. Amanat Ali, Mrs. Memoona Afsheen Malik and Mrs. Robina Rashid.

The university syndicate the highest decision-making body of the university, in its meeting held on May 9 had taken this decision that only 25 per cent BPS faculty would get incentives thus other 75 per cent would stand nowhere irrespective of the fact they meet the criteria set by the university and HEC or not. The issue was not included in the agenda item of the meeting still it was discussed and decided by the Syndicate.

The other decision that the faculty has been protesting regarding contractual lecturers , which bounds them, to apply afresh with other candidates when the posts are advertised was also taken at the Syndicate meeting.

The Syndicate had met after seven months and 71 issues of the university were discussed. Secretary Education Abdul Rauf, Higher Education Commission Executive Director Sohail Naqvi, PPP Information Secretary Fauzia Wahab and QAU Vice-Chancellor Qasim Jan also attended the meeting besides other members. The Nation

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Lecturers to start protests today
Rawalpindi: Punjab Professors and Lecturers Association (PPLA) has decided to launch protests throughout the province against the delay in acceptance of its longstanding demands, including pay increase and promotions.

In a press release, PPLA Rawalpindi chapter president Mohammad Ilyas Qureshi said the college teachers would establish protest camps at divisional headquarters level on Thursday. Dawn

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Scholarships for Beaconhouse School students
Islamabad: The University of Wollongong (Dubai) has announced a scholarship programme for the graduates of Beaconhouse School System in Pakistan starting from August this year, says a press release.

Under the scheme, three scholarships covering 100 per cent of tuition fees and six scholarships covering 50 per cent of tuition fees will be awarded to high academic performers nominated by the Beaconhouse School System.

The scholarships, worth approximately Rs21 million, are available for the entire duration of enrolment of students in the university.

Afsa Babar, manager (career guidance and college placements) at the Beaconhouse School System, said that it is a fantastic offer from a prestigious overseas university.

Raymi van der Spek, vice-president (administration) at the University of Wollongong (Dubai), said "The university is pleased to recognise and reward the efforts of the academically-meritorious students who choose to study with us."

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5,707 appear in FPSC examination
Islamabad: As many as 5,707 candidates appeared in Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) Competitive Examination-2009 held in 19 different cities of the country from April 25 to May 12.The examination was held in a smooth manner at all centres. Members and senior officers of the commission have been visiting the centres during the period to monitor and to ensure smooth conduct of the examination. The provincial governments, Wapda, Postal authorities, federal and provincial education department cooperated fully in successful completion of the examination. The News

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