PU protest against fees hike | KEMU to lose varsity status
PU students protest against 'increase' in fees
Lahore, April 03: Students of the Punjab University (PU) staged a protest against the increase in fees and
expulsion of students by the PU on Thursday. They blocked the roads
which resulted in other students facing difficulties in going to the examination
centres. They also staged a sit-in at the campus bridge. When contacted, an
Islami Jamiat Tulaba spokesmen said if the demands were not met by the PU by
April 8, they would call for a countrywide protest. The PU
vice-chancellor (VC) had earlier constituted a committee to review the
situation. The committee held a meeting on Tuesday to review the situation. The
committee members advised the PU to refrain from increasing the fees this year
when they were informed that the PU had not increased the fees and did not
intend to do so. The members were informed that 50 percent students were on
either merit scholarships, need-based scholarships or some other form of
financial assistance. Students of Hailey College of Commerce (HCC) and Hailey
College of Banking and Finance (HCBF) are also offered scholarships by various
industrialists. Prospectus: In the meeting, it was clarified that the
students of HCC were being charged the fee that had been mentioned in the
prospectus. The students were even allowed to submit their fee in two
instalments instead of a lump sum. The students incapable of paying even in two
instalments would be provided the option of paying on a monthly basis, the
meeting was told. The PU Disciplinary Action Committee also finished reviewing
the expulsion cases. It reinstated all students who had provided written
assurance of good conduct to the administration.
IJT hijacks two PU buses
Lahore: Islami Jamiat Tulaba (IJT) activists hijacked two Punjab
University (PU) buses from the PU Old Campus and the PU New Campus. They
threatened the drivers and conductors and forced the drivers to take expelled
students to the PU vice-chancellor (VC)'s office so they could stage a protest.
Drivers, conductors and over 150 staff members of the Transport Wing went on
strike after the incident, parking their buses in the workshop at the PU New
Campus. The strike was called off after about three hours when Resident
Officer-I Professor Shahid Gul and Controller Examinations Professor Zahid Karim
Khan assured the transport staff of the administration's full cooperation
against the activists. A driver and conductor said when the bus arrived at the
PU Old Campus and the students started to vacate the bus, some IJT activists -
Hafiz Tauseef, Munir Tahir, Abdul Hafeez Tahir - hijacked the bus, tortured
them, snatched the conductor's cellular phone and forced them to drive the bus
to the New Campus. The PU IJT spokesman denied IJT's involvement in hijacking
any bus and said the charges wer e fabricated. Daily Times
Punjab University results
The Punjab University (PU) Examination Department has declared
the results of various examinations. According to a press statement, the exams
include BSc Medical Laboratory & Technology, Supplementary Exam 2006 and
Annual Exam 2007, MSc Zoology (2-Years Programme), Semester System, Session
2006-2008, MSc Zoology (2-Years Replica Programme), Semester System, Session
2006-2008. The News
PhD degree awarded at PU
Lahore: Punjab University has awarded PhD degree to Farrakh
Mehmood Alvi S/o Muhammad Abdullah Alvi in the subject of Microbiology &
Molecular Genetics after completion of his thesis entitled 'Molecular
Characterization of Hypertension Related Genetic Loci of Local Population'. He
completed his thesis under the supervision of Punjab University Department of
Microbiology & Molecular Genetics (MMG) Chairperson, and Chairperson DPCC
Prof Dr Shahida Hasnain. F.P. Report
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KEMU to lose varsity status
Lahore: The King Edward Medical University (KEMU) will be reverted to
its college status. Health secretary Anwar Khan said on Thursday
night the government would soon move a bill in the provincial assembly to
withdraw the university status from the KEMU. The secretary said the
proposal was put before the government a couple of months ago but it was shelved
during the governor's rule. Sources said Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif
felt that the KEMU had failed to achieve the objectives of its elevation. Dawn
100 girls' schools razed in FATA: UN
Lahore: Taliban last year blew up more than 100 girls' schools in
the Tribal Areas of Pakistan bordering Afghanistan, the United Nations (UN) has
said. Koichiro Matsuura, UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation
director-general, said months of attacks on educational institutions, teachers
and students had created a 'shocking situation'. The lawlessness had spread to
the Swat valley in February. What was once the "Switzerland of Pakistan" had
become its Beirut, Pakistan's Ambassador to the UN Hussain Haqqani said. The
Taliban have attacked 169 girls' schools in the Swat district since July, and
last week, a suicide attacker bombed another in Balochistan. While the peace
accord in Swat 'theoretically' allowed girls to return to schools, Matsuura said
"fear still reigns" among parents and many teachers had fled the region.
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PTU to observe hunger strike, take out rally
Lahore: The Punjab Teachers Union (PTU) will observe a hunger strike and take out a rally against the government's
discriminatory behaviour against them. The PTU held nine corner meetings
in the city's nine towns under the supervision of PTU Lahore President Rasheed
Ahmed Bhatti on Thursday. The teachers decided the hunger strike would be
observed at the Masjid-e-Shuhada on April 6 (Monday) while teachers from 36
other districts would take out a rally on April 9 (Thursday) from the Lahore
High Court (LHC) to the Punjab Assembly (PA). The PTU Lahore president
said teachers from across the province would attend the rally and the hunger
strike, adding that the teachers would continue the strike until their charter
of demands was met. 100,000: "More than 100,000 teachers from 36
districts will attend the rally," Bhatti said. He said teachers were the
backbone of the society, as they were responsible for training and educating the
future generations. He said teachers were very firm in their demands, adding
that the strike would prove their determination. He said the teachers were
asking for an increase in their salaries to the equivalent of 11 grams of gold,
teaching allowance, regularising contractual teachers, removing army officials
from monitoring duty, equal benefits for teachers working in rural and urban
areas, upgrade basic pay scales, claim of group insurance and enhancing welfare
fund. Bhatti said several demands must be addressed immediately, as they
had created sense of insecurity among the teachers. He said the retired army
officers often visited schools, adding that it frightened both the children and
the teachers. He said the Education Department had already appointed assistant
education officers (AEO) to monitor the schools. He said there was no need for
retired army officials as long as the AEO concerned was performing his duties.
"The Education Department provides the officials with a large salary and petrol
allowance. They also get motorcycles but the department has not provided them
any equipment to aid them in monitoring the schools," Bhatti
said. Difficult: He said any teacher getting appointed under the Primary
School Teacher (PST) cadre had no option but to retire in the same cadre.
"Either the teacher must improve his qualifications by attaining a Masters in
Education," he said. He said the teachers appointed in urban areas were provided
more facilities in comparison to teachers appointed in rural areas. "The
teachers in urban areas are given 45 percent of house rent and conveyance
allowance. The teachers appointed in rural areas are only provided 30 percent of
the house rent is given and no conveyance allowance if provided to them," Bhatti
said. He said it was also extremely difficult for the heirs of a teacher to
attain welfare fund from the authorities concerned if the teacher had passed
away. Daily Times
LCWU seeks governor's help for tax waiver
Lahore: Following disappointing response from the district government and
federal government, the Lahore College for Women University (LCWU) has asked the
governor/chancellor to intervene for waiver of different taxes for registration
of newly purchased land of the university. According to sources in the
university, the LCWU administration had requested Federal Board of Revenue (FBR)
to waive the Capital Value Tax but it was rejected. They further said
the university administration also contacted the district administration for
waiver of Corporation Fee but to no avail, adding both the taxes/levies added up
to Rs 5 million approximately. Some Lahore College for Women University
officials, on condition of anonymity, said the land was purchased last year but
its registration in the name of LCWU had not been executed so far because of
non-payment of the taxes. They said that in wake of poor funding to
public sector universities by the government, the Lahore College for Women
University was finding it difficult to pay the taxes. They said the
Punjab government; however had a "soft corner" as it waived Stamp Duty and
Registry Fee. The university administration was expecting that the
federal government and district government would waive their taxes too, they
said, adding but their "response" was really disappointing. They further
said Lahore College for Women University was a government entity, adding
realising the meagre funding to universities unlike previous years, the federal
government and district government should waive their taxes. The
officials further said the piece of land measuring 4 kanal, 10 marlas and 137 sq
ft was purchased at 5-Shadman Colony, Shahrah-e-Aiwan-e-Tijarat by the Lahore
College for Women University last year at a cost of around Rs 150
million. "The amount was paid from the university's own resources without
any financial support from the government", they said adding, "The land was
purchased to address shortage of space in the wake of growing number of
students". According to the sources in the Punjab Higher Education
Department following the request of Lahore College for Women University to the
Chancellor, the department took the matter with the Finance Department recently.
They added in its response, the Finance Department maintained that after
rejection of the case by the federal government it might not be useful to
approach the federal government again through the Finance
Department. "However, it may be useful if the governor in his capacity as
chancellor may refer the matter to federal government for reconsideration of its
earlier advice", Finance Department maintained, the sources added. When
contacted, Lahore College for Women University Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Bushra
Mateen said the land was purchased from the university's own savings. She said,
however, now it was really difficult for the university to pay the said taxes.
To a question, she replied the FBR rejected LCWU's request on the plea
it did not have policy of waiving Capital Value Tax. She further said now the
university had contacted the chancellor to help it out. The News
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