AS security threats are looming large, the upcoming matriculation annual examinations across the province will also be posing a challenge to the government and law-enforcement agencies.

The nine education boards in the province will be setting up some 3,800 centres, where examinations will run from March 2 to April 3. The matriculation examinations will be followed by degree and intermediate annual examinations.

It is learnt that the education boards’ controller of examinations have been conveyed by the police officers that it will not be possible for them to provide security at each and every centre because of shortage of manpower besides other security duties in their respective districts.

The boards’ officials say the government has instead instructed them to hire security guards from the companies that have been cleared by the law-enforcement agencies. They claim that even the security companies do not have manpower to spare for full one month besides cost factor. Due to the growing demand for security guards from public and private sector educational institutions, they say the security guard’s per month salary is now touching some Rs18,000.

While different boards’ officials say that it was the duty of law-enforcement agencies to provide security outside the examination centres, Punjab Boards Committee of Chairmen (PBCC) Chairman Dr Nasrullah Virik says the committee has finalised that all boards should first look for the examination centres that fulfil security measures so that they should depend less on police and private security guards.

Admitting that police could not provide security at all centres for one month, Dr Virik said the respective boards would be duty bound to provide security outside the examination centres. He said the boards would also hire guards from private security agencies and they would be given remuneration on a par with the invigilators working inside the examination centres.

He, however, said that the boards would request the police to provide force to disperse candidates immediately after the examination hours.

DIG Police, Lahore, Dr Haider Ashraf says the police has always been deployed at examination centres and will do so this year too, while “stretching ourselves”. As soon as official demand will come, police will discuss the security plan at each and every examination centre and deploy the force.

THE Punjab University Academic Staff Association’s former executive council members in an emergency meeting have called upon Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, inspector general of police and vice chancellor to arrest and take action against Islami Jamiat Tulaba activists, who had abducted and tortured a PU faculty member and were later nominated in an FIR.

In a meeting chaired by Prof Dr Amir Ejaz, the former executive council members said all-out efforts would be made to protect respect of teachers. They said the IJT ‘goons’, who had abducted and tortured lecturer of Institute of Agricultural Sciences Nadeem Shad were roaming freely and police were not taking action against them. This is intolerable, they observe.

The meeting also decided that the teachers would wear black armbands on Monday (today) during their academic activities and take out rally from Undergraduate Block to Institute of Education and Research on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, PU Registrar Prof Dr Liaquat Ali and Resident Officer Prof Dr Sajid Rashid have strongly condemned abduction of PU lecturer by IJT activists and consequent torture.

THE Islami Jamiat Tulaba members have elected Superior University’s LLM student Muhammad Zubair Hafeez as Nazim-i-Aala for the session 2015-16. Peshawar University’s student Sohaibuddin Kakakhail has been elected as secretary general.

Punjab University IJT Nazim Abdul Muqeet as well as Faisal Javed have been appointed as assistant secretary general.

The IJT members’ convention at Punjab University has also completed the appointment of central and provincial Nazims besides constitution of a planning committee headed by Abdul Muqeet for the planning of the next session.

THE Still and Film (SAF) Society of the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences last week held a “Light up for Peace 2015” in solidarity with the Army Public School, Peshawar, attack victims.

Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Talat Naseer Pasha inaugurated the event by lighting a sky-lantern. Senior faculty member Prof Dr Kamran Ashraf and other faculty members and students attended the event in large numbers. The students lit sky-lanterns in memory of the APS Peshawar attack victims and presented a tableau and a skit on peace. Musical performances by singer Amanat Ali and Soch Band also featured the event.

The vice chancellor said the events like “Light up for Peace” would be helpful in social training of students and creating awareness about peace and harmony.

FORMER vice chancellor of Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi, and Karakorum International University, Gilgit, Dr Najma Najam has joined University of Central Punjab as dean academics.

Dr Najam did her PhD from Bowling Green State University, Ohio, USA, in neurosciences and later joined University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA, , for her Post Doc.

Dr Najam is author of 130 publications and attended 310 national and international conferences. She has been decorated with national and international awards. – mansoormalik173@hotmail.com

Published in Dawn February 16th , 2015

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