PESHAWAR, June 29: The NWFP University of Engineering and Technology is cooperating with the provincial government in developing a summary to be presented to the Higher Education Commission for setting up a world-class engineering university in the province. UET Vice-Chancellor Imtiaz Hussain Gillani told a press briefing on Wednesday that the HEC had offered to fund setting up of an engineering university of international standard in the province at an estimated cost of Rs6 billion.

He said the UET had signed memorandums of understanding with the University of McGill, Canada, and the University of Stathclyade, the UK during his visit to the two countries.

Under the MoU signed by Mr Gillani and Dr Jacques Hurtubise, acting vice-principal, research, McGill University, the two institutions would establish relations from September 2005 to Aug 31, 2007, for exchange of faculty and staff, joint research activities, publications, participation in seminars, academic meetings and students exchange programme.

The UET students would join the School of Urban Planning at McGill University to pursue their masters and PhD degrees, he said.

He said four UET staff members had completed their PhDs in the University of Strathclyde. The linkage among the universities would extend research collaboration and researchers would be sent to the UK for one year during their studies, he said.

A Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence was formed with technical support from the Strathclyde University in 1994, Mr Gillani said.

He said that during the split PhD programme each student would be supervised by teachers from the two universities and provided video conference facility, internet access, email and electronic chat facilities.

Mr Gillani said that during his visit to the UK, he met officials of the University of Loughborough and University of Surrey to look into possibilities of joint educational programmes in different engineering disciplines.

Central Development Working Party Chairman Dr Akram Sheikh said the CDWP had approved projects of Rs479 million for strengthening the Peshawar campus of the UET.

He said a department of industrial engineering would be introduced on the campus with an estimated cost of Rs186 million. The university would be the pioneer in introducing BSc industrial engineering programme in the province, he said.

He said the CDWP had approved the construction of a separate academic block of the UET at a cost of Rs95 million as it was currently housed in the old building of the engineering college in the University of Peshawar.