September 20, 2006	Wednesday	Sha'aban 26, 1427

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MULTAN, Sept 19: A two-day national conference on centennial celebrations of the Muslim League began at the Bahauddin Zakariya University on Tuesday. Speaking at the moot organised by the BZU history department, chief guest Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan, the federal minister for food, agriculture and livestock (Minfal), said at the inaugural session that the Muslim League had created Pakistan and only it had the potential to develop the ideal institutions.

The country was passing through a critical phase with internal and external threats, he said, out of which only the Muslim League could pull Pakistan and help it fight terrorism, extremism and fundamentalism.

He said the government was committed to the Muslim League’s manifesto of public participation in the government and transfer of power to the masses.

“We are committed to raise the literacy rate up to 76 per cent by 2010 and improve the higher education to make Pakistan technologically advanced and a prosperous country.”

He said the higher education budget had been increased from Rs2.7 billion in 2001 and Rs16.5 billion in 2006.

He said agriculture constituted the largest sector of our economy and contributed about 24 per cent of the GDP, besides being the largest source of foreign exchange. Investment in this sector had increased from a meager less than Rs1 billion in 2003 to about Rs12 billion in three years.

Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Hayat Muhammad Awan said in his welcome address that the purpose of this conference was to bring academia, researchers, politicians and policy makers at one platform and celebrate the achievements of the Muslim League over the last 100 years.

“We are here to discuss serious issues confronting Pakistan with reference to the future role of this political party.”

He said the Muslim League right after its establishment in 1906 had to confront a challenging task to uplift the morale of the Muslims rule in sub-continent. It was, however, lucky to have the personalities like the Quaid-i-Azam who enabled it achieve the goal of creation of Pakistan.

Prof Awan said the BZU was playing its due role in developing this country and in a span of 31 years it now boasts of running 35 departments, five constitute colleges with more than 10,000 students and it is running two sub-campuses — one in Sahiwal and other in Dera Ghazi Khan.

He further said the Higher Education Commission has approved an additional fund of Rs38 million each for the establishment of a Seraiki department, strengthening the mass communication department and Dera Ghazi Khan sub-campus. An allocation of Rs130 million grant for the Textile College and Rs450 million for the Sahiwal sub-campus is in the pipeline.

The Punjab government, he said, had committed to providing Rs50 million for the Institute of Banking and Finance, Rs40 million for the Multan College of Arts and Rs100 million each for the engineering college.