FBISE postponed HSSC practical exams
Exams have been delayed till further orders
Islamabad, Oct 23: The Federal Board of Intermediate and
Secondary Education (FBISE) has postponed the practical examination of Higher
Secondary School Certificate (HSSC) supplementary examination 2009, scheduled to
commence from October 22. According to a press release issued here, the exams
have been delayed till further orders due to the prevailing security situation
in the country. The candidates will be informed about the new schedule at
their home addresses as and when finalised.
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Academics criticise HEC criteria for VCs selection
Islamabad: Lack of uniformity in the policies of Higher Education Commission
(HEC) with regard to selection of vice-chancellors of the universities has
caused ambiguities and concerns among the professors and lecturers who have
objected to the entire criteria set for the selection of the
vice-chancellors. Advertisements that have appeared in the press for the
vacancies show that different criteria have been set for different universities
for the candidates who want to apply for the position of vice-chancellor. The
time period, for instance, to apply varies for different universities from days
to weeks. For example, for the office of vice-chancellor of Hazara University
the advertisement that appeared on October 20 says the candidates can apply
within eleven days where as for the same position of QAU nearly one-and-a-half
months time period has been fixed to invite applications. In some cases, the
restrictions of age-limit have been abolished completely while in some
advertisements it is clearly mentioned that the candidate should not be more
than 65 years of age on the date of submission of application. Professors of
the universities believe that different criteria have been set to benefit few or
to select favourites. They regretted that at least basic criteria for the
appointment of vice-chancellors of the universities should be uniform across the
country. One of the members of the search committee when contacted opined that requirements of each university are different so the
criteria for the vice-chancellor of every university would be different.
"QAU is a research-oriented varsity and international applications have been
invited for the position of vice-chancellor, which would take time that's why
time duration is long compared to other universities" he added. It is
pertinent to mention here that the Federation of All Pakistan Universities
Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) has been criticising the process of
appointment of vice-chancellors of the public sector universities terming it
non-transparent and based on considerations other than merit. To appoint
in-service professors as vice-chancellors of the universities has been their
long-standing demand. Meanwhile, due to security risk and unstable law and
order situation, tests to be conducted by National Testing Service Pakistan has
been postponed till further announcement. University of Peshawar admission
test, State Bank of Pakistan Sbots-16 Batch, AIOU M.Phil/PhD test and Minhaj
University Lahore test that were to be held on October 25 have been postponed. The nation
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Convocation of NUST on Oct 29
Islamabad: National University of Science and Technology (NUST) will hold
its 6th convocation here on October 29. Degrees and gold medals would be awarded
to the masters, Mphil and PhD students who have graduated after December 6,
2007, said spokesperson of the university here Thursday. All the interested
graduates have been advised to inform the registrar about their willingness to
attend the convocation by providing necessary information including name,
registration number, year of passing, telephone number and mailing address. The
graduates can bring only two guests in the convocation Hall. Further information
can be obtained from the phone numbers 051-90851043,90851045 and 90851047.
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PAL selects Bhutto's book for 'Pas-e-Zindan' award
Islamabad: Pakistan Academy of Letters on Thursday announced the
prestigious 'Pas-e-Zindan' Award for the book 'If I am Assassinated' written by
Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. While announcing the Award, PAL Chairman Fakhar
Zaman said that according to the decision on the best books written during the
four martial law periods in Pakistan, the eminent panel of Judges has chosen
Shaheed Z A Bhutto's 'If I Am Assassinated'. Other then the chosen book
of Bhutto, PAL has also awarded Prime Minister Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani's book
'Chah-e-Yousaf Se Sada', Makhdoom Javed Hashmi's book 'Takhta-i-Dar Kay Sai
Talay', Tariq Khursheed's book 'Soey-Dar - Kia Main Deshet Gard Tha', Hameed
Akhtar's book 'Kal Kothri' and Zafar-ullah-Poshni's 'Zindagi Zindan Dili Ka Naam
Hai'. During the four martial law periods in Pakistan that of General
Ayub Khan, General Yahya Khan, General Zia-ul-Haq and General Pervez Musharraf,
the political prisoners not only waged political struggle, but also penned down
the era of persecution and imprisonments for raising voice against the
establishment. Many books regarding 'Pas-e-Zindan' Award were published earlier,
but there was no appreciation of such literature in Pakistan so far. PAL
chairman said that many captive writers raised the voice of truth against
dictators and martial law while in prison. He said that through this award,
Pakistan Academy of Letters decided to pay tribute to all such writers. He said
that the so-called conspiracy case in the era of General Ayub, the cruelties in
the eras of General Musharraf is the part of our history. The hardships, which
the writers suffered during these times are reflected in these
books. Fakhar Zaman said that PAL will organise a big ceremony to give
'Pas-e-Zindan Award'. The president of Pakistan has been requested to preside
over the ceremony to distribute the amount of awards among the writers.
A committee comprising of senior writers was formed for the selection of
books for the award, which includes Dr. Muhammad Ali Siddiqui, Professor Khawaja
Masood, Dr. Mehdi Hasan, I.A. Rehman, Siraj-ul-Haq Memon, Saleem Raz, Dr. Shah
M. Mari, Altaf Ahmed Qureshi, and Rahat Saeed. The award money is Rs100,000.
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Comstech meeting on 26th
Islamabad: A national meeting on 'Challenges for Socio-economic Development in Pakistan: Role of Science and
Technology' will be held here from October 26 to 28. According to a press
release issued here Thursday, the meeting is organised by Commission on Science
and Technology for Sustainable Development in the South (Comsats) and the OIC
Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (Comstech), in
collaboration with the Higher Education Commission (HEC) of Pakistan. The
meeting will be attended by students, researchers and thinkers hailing from all
provinces of Pakistan. The news
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AHs Principal accused of corruption
Rawalpindi: The Principal of Allied Hospitals (AHs) and
Rawalpindi Medical College (RMC), Dr Musaddiq Khan has reportedly embezzled
millions of rupees from the funds of institutions being run under him as he
purchased substandard machines for AHs and received hefty kickbacks, reliable
sources revealed on Thursday. Sources also confided that Dr Musaddiq Khan had
also appointed one of his friends namely Saqib Abbasi, who had MBBS degree but
was actually a property dealer by profession, as Chairman of Board of Management
(BoM), violating the Punjab Medical and Health Institutions Act and Rules
(PMHIAR) 2003, to just get approval of his illegal purchase orders. According
to sources, Clause "e" of Article 6 of PMHIAR 2003 reads as "Six non-official
members from amongst retired professors of medical colleges, renowned retired
doctors from the general cadre, management experts/retired civil and military
officers, distinguished citizens, notable jurists and financial experts can
become member as well as Chairman of BoM". As per rules, Saqib Abbasi does not
deserve for the slot, sources maintained. Sources close to Dr Musaddiq told
this scribe that the diagnosis machines prices of which are in millions had been
purchased for pocketing commission but the machines were never procured which
were essential for diagnoses as well as it were much cheaper in price. The
diagnosis machines including Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Angiography,
Mammography, Culture Media and Saturna purchased by Dr Musaddiq Khan with the
approval of BoM are actually of low qualities and have not been functioning
since the day they were installed, causing immense difficulties for thousands of
patients as well as doctors, sources added. Similarly, the Saturna machine,
which is used in laboratory, was purchased by spending heavy amount, also not
performing regular functions. In another bid to grab money, Dr Musaddiq Khan
purchased a Culture Media Machine, commonly used for examining urine, blood and
spit, with the cost of Rs 3.5 million set up in BBH. The machine is not being
used whereas the paramedics prepare menu with hands, sources added. Sources
also informed that the owners of private laboratories, most of them are near and
dear of Dr Musaddiq, are being facilitated as Gynecologists of AHs refer the
pregnant women to the private laboratories for important tests, due to which the
poor patients have to pay heavy amount in absence of Hb-Electrophoresis Machine.
In the same way, ELISA machine, used for diagnosis of Hepatitis B and C, has not
been installed in any of AHs just to facilitate the owners of private
laboratories. It is pertinent to mention here that most of private laborites are
run by the doctors or they have share in the labs. The nation
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Annual day at Pearl Valley Public School
Rawalpindi: Kashmir Education Foundation (KEF) Chairman Vice Admiral (r)
Farooq Rashid has said that education is the cornerstone of development of any
civilised society. Addressing the 13th Annual Day of the Pearl Valley
Public School and College, he said that without education, societies cannot
progress and languish in poverty and disease. "If we look at the wider problems
affecting our nation, almost all can be linked to lack of education. Quality
education is the key to progress, as it creates leadership with a vision, which
is the ultimate gift to under-privileged children, especially girl child," he
added. He said that there are many NGOs actively promoting literacy
across Pakistan, however, KEF is focusing on providing quality education with
emphasis on promoting religious and cultural values. Earlier, welcoming a
large gathering of parents and old students, PVPS Principal Asif Habib Khan said
that they were confident of having a network of schools throughout the rural
areas in Pakistan. Students presented various entertaining skits
highlighting moral values, paying tribute to defenders of the country and also
focused on prevailing domestic and political culture in light humour. The news
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