KARACHI, Sept 12: “I studied hard not to bag any positions. I wanted to acquire knowledge and become learned and face the world with confidence,” said young Ayesha Nawab of DA Degree College for Women.

Asked why she preferred a private college over government ones, the student said: “Well, we all know what happens in government colleges. Students want to study, but there are no teachers keen on teaching. So the students are left to fend for themselves. I didn’t want that for myself.”

Ayesha bagged the third position in A-1 grade with 921 marks out of a total of 1,100 in the Intermediate Science General Group as the Board of Intermediate Education, Karachi, (BIEK) announced results for the group along with pre-engineering, home economics (Part-I) and diploma in physical education here on Thursday in a programme.

In the Science General Group, Syeda Mehak Fatima of the College of Emerging Technologies stood first with 937 marks while there was a tie between Nimra Amin also of the College of Emerging Technologies with 934 marks and Musfirah Abdullah of DA Degree College for Women with as many marks.

The programme was also attended by Director General Colleges, Sindh, and Chairman of the Centralised Admission Policy (CAP) Committee Prof Dr Nasir Ansar whose son Zain Nasir of Adamjee Govt Science College came second with 986 in the pre-engineering group. It presented a fine opportunity for the media to ask him about the issue of lack of teacher’s in government colleges brought up by Ayesha Nawab.

“We are working on building a proper student and teacher ratio. Some 22,000 new teachers are in the pipeline,” he shared. Asked about the geology department at the Diwan Dayaram Jethamal (DJ) Sindh Government Science College that has been left without a teacher after the retirement of its department head, Dr Ansar said they were in the process of finding a new teacher for it as well as asking the retired teacher Syed Mohammad Maroof Husain to work as a professor emeritus there.

The issue of colleges producing zero per cent results also came up. “These colleges are allowed to remain open as they are catering to the failure and poor students who are not accepted by good colleges. Someone should be providing them education, too,” Dr Ansar pointed out.

“Besides, for us all colleges are equal. There is a troika of students, teachers and parents that has to work with accordance to each other,” he said. “If the parents are able to make their children attend college regularly, I don’t think that the teachers will keep away from the classrooms after seeing them full of people,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dr Ansar’s son shook his head and smiled when asked if he had taken tuitions from his father. “No, I took tuitions from other people,” he said. “I feel there is nothing wrong with taking tuitions. Students who take tuitions are serious about their education and work harder than others as they put in more study time,” he added. Asked if he was satisfied with the board’s system, he said that he was.

With the exception of Dr Ansar’s son and another boy who stood third in his group, the top positions in all examinations were bagged by girls as usual. In the pre-engineering group, Munazza Khan of St Lawrence’s Govt Girls Degree College stood first with 987 marks and the third position was a tie between Rimsha Muhammad Naeem of BAMM PECHS Govt College for Women with 980 marks and Syed Ahsan Adeeb of Aga Khan Higher Secondary School.

Meanwhile, the passing percentage for the home economics (Part-I) exams was 46.67 as 271 registered for the exams and 119 of the 255 who appeared passed in all the seven papers.

The diploma in physical education produced a passing percentage of 85.71 as 15 candidates registered, 14 appeared and 12 passed.