ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology on Monday observed that the caretaker government was not authorised to make regular appointments as its mandate was limited to day-to-day affairs.

The chairman of the committee, Senator Sardar Mohammad Shafiq Tareen, while responding to a briefing about Pakistan Standards and Quality Control Authority (PSQCA) expressed concern over the state of affairs in the authority.

The committee was presented with a list of employees who have not been repatriated despite court orders.

According to information provided to the committee by the acting PSQCA director general (DG), there are a total of 15 employees serving on look-after charges with several others on deputation. Currently, there are 321 vacant positions in the authority.

PSQCA told to continue with current setup till elected govt appoints permanent DG

A summary for the appointment of a regular director general was submitted to the Prime Minister Office, which in turn directed the ministry to seek approval from the Senate committee.

After deliberation, the chairman of the committee said the current arrangement at the PSQCA should be maintained until an elected government comes to power to point a regular director general.

The committee members raised concerns about the delay in the appointment process. The acting DG attributed the delay to ongoing court cases and employees demanding promotions which hindered new appointments.

The committee chairman expressed dissatisfaction with the delay and instructed for identification of promotion quotas and direct recruitment quotas to clear the backlog.

The committee also received a briefing on the substantial deficit in the pension account of Comsats University Islamabad’s employees, amounting to billions of rupees.

The rector of the university explained that initially the employees were enrolled in a contributory pension fund, however, in 2010, the university’s board of governors decided to provide pension benefits, deducting 15 per cent of the basic pay from employees’ salaries.

To date, approximately Rs1.6 billion have been collected with an estimated pension liability of Rs6 billion by 2035, resulting in Rs5 billion deficit.

The rector stated that the university lacks resources to bridge this financial gap. The committee members expressed dismay at the lack of planning by the university administration and called for an inquiry into the matter.

Senator Tareen established a subcommittee to address the university’s issues, including those related to pay scales.

Meanwhile, the committee ratified the appointment of Senator Prince Ahmed Omer Ahmedzai as a member of the board of governors of Pakistan Council of Science and Technology.

The committee meeting was also attended by Senator Kamran Murtaza, Senator Sana Jamali and Senator Dr Humayun Mohmand.

Published in Dawn, September 26th, 2023