SAHIWAL: The Punjab Higher Education Department (HED), in consultation with the provincial finance and law departments, has reportedly moved a summary to Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, demanding ‘rescinding/cancellation’ of the autonomous status of 18 public sector colleges to non-autonomous status, Dawn learnt from sources.

The Punjab Professors and Lecturers Association (PPLA) has been consistently protesting against the autonomy to the 18 colleges.

Sources added that the HED had proposed to the CM to advise the governor to cancel the Aug 8, 2010 notification that had granted autonomous status to 18 colleges under Sub-Section 2 (1) Clause (C)-2 of The Punjab Government Educational and Training Institutions Ordinance 1960, amended in 1984 & 2002.

It is said Naeem Ghaus, special secretary HED, confirmed the denotification summary regarding administrative and financial autonomy of 18 colleges had been moved. Mr Ghaus assured the PPLA leaders that autonomous status of college would be withdrawn within weeks.

It is important to note that two PML-N parliamentarians from Sahiwal district, Malik Arshad and Naveed Aslam Lodhi, had submitted two separate adjournment motions in the Punjab Assembly while Malik Nadeem Kamran, former provincial Minister for Planning and Development, had asked Minister for Higher Education Raja Yassir Humayun for withdrawal of autonomous status to 18 colleges.

In 2010, the HED, under an ordinance, had declared 26 colleges as autonomous and recommended formation of the board of governors (BoGs) for financial and administrative autonomy.

The HED move was strongly rejected by then PPLA through protests. Some college teachers while filing different petitions had challenged formation of BoGs before the Lahore High Court.

The LHC bench, under Justice Ijazul Hasan and Justice Shaukat Ali Khan, had reportedly suspended HED notification of 2010 by declaring that ordinance ‘lapsed’ as it was not implemented for three years. But even after getting instruction from the court, the HED did not withdraw notification.

It is worth mentioning that no BoGs were formed in 18 colleges since 2012.

PPLA Secretary-General Sahibzada Ahmed Nadeem told Dawn it was result of the protests by the college teachers that the HED had decided to move back on BoGs, which had been dysfunctional since 2012.

Cylinder blast: A 15-year-old worker was critically injured when a cylinder burst at a tyre shop on Arifwala Road on Tuesday.

Abdus Salam was filling air in a motorcycle tyre when the inflator cylinder burst, inflicting injuries on him.

Rescue 1122 shifted Salam to the teaching hospital where, the sources said, his condition was critical.

In another incident, a woman was hit and killed by a fast-moving car while she was crossing the Arifwala Road near Chak 100/9-L.

The woman was later identified as Ameeran Bibi, a resident of the abovementioned village. Police arrested the car driver.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2021