PESHAWAR: The students of different educational institutions have demanded of the provincial government to open all the public sector universities and waive semester fee as they could not attend regular classes due to restrictions imposed to contain the Covid-19 spread.

Speaking at a news conference at the Peshawar Press Club on Tuesday, a group of students led by Pakhtun Students Federation, Peshawar University secretary information Babar Khurshid said the prolonged lockdown had badly affected the entire education process.

He said the restrictions had also made lives of the public miserable due to inflation, joblessness and other financial issues, and in the prevailing conditions parents were unable to clear dues of their children.

“We are unable to pay semester fee,” the student leader said and demanded of the provincial government to announce financial relief for the students.

He said the government had announced scholarships under its Ehsaas programme, but the deserving students were yet to get any relief. He said the federal government should ensure provision of scholarships to all the needy students at the earliest.

He also demanded of the provincial government to ensure regular audit of the public sector universities and take strict action against the people involved in corruption. He also asked for provision of required funds to the universities to help them overcome financial crisis in order to resolve the students’ issues pertaining to transport, hostels and canteens. He promised that the students would strict follow the standard operating procedure against Covid-19 if the campuses were opened.

The students warned of launching a protest campaign if the provincial government did not accept their demands.

Published in Dawn, June 2nd, 2021