Ahsan Iqbal (Federal Minister) #AskTheMinister for Educaton

To:

Ahsan Iqbal (Federal Minister) #AskTheMinister

Dear Sir!

Thank you very much for starting this kind of interaction. I appreciate various steps taken by your government for the improvement and strengthening of the higher education sector. I have full confidence that it will be continued with the same spirit and commitment. I believe that the uplift of the higher education is is a joint responsibility of the public, students, faculty and the government. Therefore, the input of the stakeholders can be beneficial.

In my humble capacity, I noticed a few issues, which if resolved will help a large number of students and faculty. They are being enumerated as following:

1. Researchers do not have the equipment to conduct or continue their research. Especially those researcher who return from abroad, do not have the facilities through which they may conduct similar research. HEC just offers a small amount i.e. 0.5 Million PKR as a Startup research grant. That much money is not enough to initiate research. So healthy grants are needed to promote research in our universities. For the grants its amount and scope etc, we can follow the mechanisms of technologically advanced countries.

2. HEC returned scholars face difficulty in getting regular job (perhaps just a job, irrespective of regular or contract). It is highly desired to devise a proper mechanism for the placement of the returned scholars. It is very disappointing that they have signed bond/deed of agreement with the Govt. to serve the country for 5 years, however, there is no proper mechanism for their appointment. It is indirectly encouraging the brain drain to other countries .

3. The HEC indigenous PhD scholarship program needs a complete revisit. HEC offers 10,000PKR to Master students and 13,000PKR to PhD students. This is far less than enough. We all belong to families with average or below average incomes. How can one go through a full time commitment for 5 years just on the above mentioned stipend? You already know that families look forward to their kids, that after graduation they will support their family. In a stipend of 10,000 to 13,000PKR one can barely afford a single room accommodation, how could one support his/her family. Please revisit this, a stipend equivalent to that of scholars studying abroad may be offered. As an example, that I just read, European countries offer approximately, 1000-2000 euros per month to Master/PhD Students. Chinese Scholarship council offer monthly stipend of 3000 to 3500 RMB to Master PhD students. We may follow their lead on this!

4. Mostly, public sector Universities have decade’s old equipment for undergraduate students. Even the faculty members who joined at the arrival of those equipment, retired from service. That old equipment are supposed to be in science and technology museums (there are museums, like shanghai science and technology museum etc). Please help the universities to bring new technology. HEC has program in which they provide 3.0 million PKR for small lab equipment, but they have put a restriction that this money should be used for up gradation of those equipment, only, which are 5 years old. HEC may give generous funds, with no restriction, so that the labs could be upgraded to the required state of the art level. 

5. Usually the deadlines in any call for proposals/grant applications are sharp. They may be announced several months earlier. All over the world, calls have enough time for thinking, planning and designing of a project according to the call requirement. No faculty members may have proposals ready in advance.

6. Please provide dedicated electricity lines to universities. Imagine a student or faculty is working on certain simulations which require several hours or days (if the normal PC is being used), and there is load shedding, would it be possible ever to complete a single simulation, the answer is definitely no. While performing experiments, one would definitely need continuous supply of electricity. Experimentation never accepts power interruption. The load shedding in public sector universities is severely affecting the performance of students and faculty. If universities are being provided with dedicated power lines and exempted from load shedding, everyone is expected to appreciate this step.

In the end, I assure you of my full support in my humble capacity, for the improvement in the higher education sector. We love our country, we feel proud while serving it.

By
Khurshed Ahmad