Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar on Friday took notice of an application filed by a university student pertaining to the high fees liable to be paid by applicants for job vacancies, according to a statement issued from the public relations department of the Supreme Court.

In the application, the university student had complained that the fee required to apply for many positions was too high for those who are unemployed.

The application added that due to the heavy financial burden, job seekers were being forced to forego applying for many positions.

On the directions of the chief justice, the government on Friday issued instructions to all ministries and their divisions to cover 50 per cent of the applicable fees from their own budgets to "save unemployed citizens from their financial burden," the statement said.

Instructions were also issued to the National Testing Service to observe the rules of the Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) and ensure the least possible rate of fee.

The chief justice has asked the Security Division and the Establishment Division to submit a report regarding the implementation of the instructions within two months.

Provincials governments were also directed to take the required steps to provide maximum relief to job aspirants, and to submit a detailed report within six weeks.