PESHAWAR, Nov 30: NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah has granted complete autonomy to the Edwards College in deciding the pay structure of teachers to be appointed under contractual arrangements.

He reconstituted the executive committee of the college to be headed by the principal. It would also have the nominee of the NWFP bishop which would implement the routine matters of the college.

The governor said that the bishop as and when saw that things were not moving well, could call upon the governor to convene an extraordinary meeting to settle the matters. He said that the government would wish to make a gradual withdrawal and dissociate itself with institutions like the Edwards College.

The governor issued a directive that the Edwards College should plan a chain of schools throughout the province. On the indication of the participants of the meting, he agreed that the college should establish a school in Dera Ismail Khan where a piece of land was already available.

The governor was presiding over a meeting of the board of governors of the college, a government handout said here on Friday. The meeting approved the budget and took certain decisions to run the institution in a smooth manner.

He emphasised that the college administration must evolve a proper mechanism for the appointment of qualified teachers on contract basis against the vacant posts.

The governor said that in the public sector educational institutions, the government had introduced a new concept of teachers, parents and elected councillors committees which would run the educational institutions and, therefore, autonomous and semi- autonomous institutions should work out a mechanism so that the stakeholders could be involved in the execution of the matters related to the college.

NWFP bishop Cecil J. William, minister and secretary of education, secretary finance and other high-ranking officials attended the meeting.