SAHIWAL: The Punjab governor/chancellor has formed the ​much-awaited vice chancellor committee (VCC) to run administrative, academic and financial affairs of the newly-established University of Sahiwal (UoS).

The committee will work for a transitional period and it has two main tasks– establishing autonomy of the UoS by separating its administratively and financially from status of sub-campus of Bahauddin Zakariya University (BZU) and forming the university’s own syndicate which will replace the committee in future.

The VCC is a transitory body and it will work until establishment of the syndicate. A separate account head will also be formed in divisional treasury office for transfer of funds from the Punjab government to the UoS.

The Punjab Assembly had passed the UoS Act 2015 for establishing of an autonomous university. It declared that 54 acres sub-campus of the BZU will be converted into the UoS. There were two legal requirements– one appointment of vice chancellor and second is formation of the VCC for transitory period.

The first requirement was met during the first week of this month when Dr Rauf-i-Azam, VC of the University of Education, was given additional charge of the UoS. He is already having additional charge of the University of Okara.

The VCC will be chaired by Punjab Minster for Higher Education Rana Mashhood Ahmad. It consists of 13 members, including Dr Rauf-i-Azam, provincial secretaries Higher Education Department, finance, law and parliamentary affairs, chairperson federal Higher Education Commssion (HEC), chairperson HEC Punjab, Dr Mooed, former campus director, PML-N MPAs Malik Nadeem Kamran and Samina Noor, four persons of eminence, namely retired Federal Secretary Mazhar Ali, philanthropist & industrialist Sheikh Younas, Ex-President Sahiwal Chamber Safdar Rasheed and former Professor of English Neelam Shoaib.

KILLED: Four unidentified men killed a man at village Bambiwala, Harappa. Shan Muhammad was sleeping in his house and he got up on hearing some noise in the street. He came out of house out of curiosity and four men fired at him. Shan died instantly while the attackers fled.

DPO Atif Akram said police were investigating murder from different angles. The body was shifted to the district headquarters hospital for autopsy.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2016