KARACHI, July 12: In an effort to do away with a dearth of high quality professors and lecturers, the Sir Syed University of Engineering and Technology is trying to acquire the services of Pakistani experts abroad who are thinking of coming back to Pakistan.

This was stated by M. Afzal Munif on Saturday during a press briefing on the 20th annual meeting of the institution’s board of governors. He said the BoG had decided to contact the experts through the World Wide Web.

In response to a question, Mr Munif said information technology, biomedical engineering and electronics were the areas in which the shortage was being felt acutely.

He said during the annual meeting the university’s budget for 2003-04 was passed. According to the initial estimates, said Mr Munif, the university proposed to raise Rs290 million.

“And Rs260 million is proposed to be spent. This means that the budget is a surplus one to the tune of Rs30 million.”

Mr Munif said during 2002-03 the university had performed exceptionally vis-a-vis financial discipline. Asked if the student fee had been enhanced, he answered in the negative.

“In contrast the other universities that increased the fee, we did not enhance the fee.” He said special care had been taken in the university’s budget not to burden the students unnecessarily.