KARACHI, Jan 27: Researchers and academicians at a workshop on Monday at the University of Karachi called for declaring a “state of alert” at educational institutes and research centres besides adopting modern research techniques and methods to counter challenges of expeditious changes taking place in science and technology globally.

The three-day workshop on “statistical methods in research with special reference to applied biology” was organized by the Department of Biochemistry, University of Karachi, in collaboration with the Pakistan Scientific and Technological Centre (PASTIC), Islamabad.

Speaking at the inaugural session of the workshop, Vice Chancellor Federal Urdu University for Science, Arts and Technology Dr. Pirzada Qasim urged scientists and researchers to intensify their efforts in learning modern techniques and ways of research.

“Pakistani scientists would have to adopt statistical methods and techniques in research as it plays a pivotal role in accomplishment of the desirable results”, he said.

Director-General PASTIC, Islamabad, Dr. Mohammad Afzal, said English as medium of instruction would never be fruitful for people of the country and they would remain dependent on an alien language to get scientific knowledge.

Lauding the steps taken by Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government in the NWFP for declaring Urdu as an official language, he claimed that owing to the adoption of Urdu as an official language and medium of instruction, standard of education would hopefully get a boost in the NWFP.

“Everybody is aware that standard of education is declining in the country but I’m quite sure that it would improve in NWFP after adopting Urdu as official language”, he said and added that human beings prefer to get knowledge in language, in which they dream.

Citing Japanese and Chinese nations, he contended unless we adopt Urdu as medium of instruction at our educational institutes, Pakistan would remain dependent on English language, which could be a better language for adopting any profession but not helpful in overall progress of the country.

Vice Chancellor of Karachi University Dr. Zafar Saeed Saify said on the occasion that holding of research workshops and seminars would help the country in the near future as researchers and scientists always remain in search of new and effective techniques to enhance their efficiency.

He opined that future of Urdu as language of modern science and technology was bright and there stand prospects that research work in Urdu would be initiated soon in the country.

However, he said nobody can deny the importance of English as a major portion of scientific and technological research was in internationally known language.

He informed that the KU was already cooperating with the PASTIC in holding research workshops, training sessions and seminars and expressed the hope that the three-day workshop in usage of statistical methods in research would be beneficial for scientists and students.

Among others, Dean Faculty of Science KU Dr. Altaf Khan, Chairman Department of Biochemistry Dr. Muhammad Ishaq and Dr. Abid Azhar also spoke.—PPI