BAHAWALPUR: Minister of State for Climate Change Zartaj Gul distributed certificates and cheques for the Pakistan Scottish Scholarship Scheme (2020-21) among female students at the Islamia University, Bahawalpur (IUB), on Wednesday.

The scheme was funded by the British Council. At the ceremony, the state minister said the government had planned to introduce laws to enforce a uniform syllabus for educational institutions - state-run, private and religious seminaries.She said Federal Minister for Education Shafqat Mahmood has been assigned task by Prime Minister Imran Khan to draft the bill that would be furnished in the parliament to introduce the uniform syllabus which would be implemented and taught simultaneously in all public and private institutions and religious seminaries. She said the prime minister had the vision of quality education for all.

“PM Khan wants to end disparity between the rich and the poor regarding the quality of education in the federating units of the country,” she said, adding that after the implementation of the uniform syllabus, the quality of education in Punjab and Balochistan provinces would be the same.

She dispelled the impression that scholarships for students of Balochistan getting education in Punjab universities had been abolished or withdrawn.

“Students from Balochistan will continue getting government-funded scholarships to get education in universities of Punjab province,” she maintained. She thanked the British Council for extending scholarships to female students for higher education.

She said that under the vision of Mr Khan, thousands of students got benefits from government-funded Ehsas Scholarship Programme. She lamented that several parents did not allow their daughters to get higher education and under such circumstances, millennium goals of progress and prosperity would not be achieved. She said that an educated woman could help her family economically.

“Our people will have to allow their daughters and sisters to get higher education and do job in the scenario where technology has changed the world,” she said.

She lamented that several people did not give property rights to their daughters and sisters.

“I personally know several rich families in Dera Ghazi Khan who do not give inheritance to their women,” she said. She added that people must avoid giving votes to those who accumulate assets and properties and do money laundering when they become parliamentarians.

“PM Iman Khan has a vision to make the country free of corruption,” she said.

She said the FIA’s cybre wing has been directed to take immediate action against those involved in blackmailing women online and on phone. She urged the people to avoid wasting drinking water. She said that action would be taken against thouse found involved in tree chopping on state lands.

IUB Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Engineer Athar Mahboob said that efforts were underway to bring the IUB in the global ranking of best 100 universities of the world.

Published in Dawn, March 25th, 2021