NAROWAL: Hundreds of students are facing a great deal of inconvenience due to non-availability of travel facilities for a month as the University of Narowal has suspended all bus services.

These students, hailing from distant villages, towns, and cities, such as Shakargarh and Zafarwal, travel daily to attend classes and return home.

Girl students travelling from the surrounding villages of Shakargarh and Zafarwal tehsils, as well as those residing near the Pakistan-India International Border, face particularly severe difficulties.

Asma Habib, a mass communication student from the Skarul village in Zafarwal tehsil, situated near the Working Boundary, bemoaned the closure of the university’s bus service.

Narowal varsity VC says service to be restored after replacing tyres of buses

She now relies on public transport for her daily commute, and quite often she has to face harassment.

“If the complaint about harassment is made at home, the family members will stop us from going to the university and the educational activities will come to an end,” she said.

Maria Javed, who journeys daily from Chak Amro in Shakargarh tehsil to the University of Narowal, with friends said there are limited rooms in the girls hostel of the university due to which they have to travel daily.

She said due to the closure of university transport for a month, girl students are forced to travel on public transport by paying fare.

Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Yunus told Dawn that he himself stopped the university bus service. He said the tyres of all the buses had worn out.

He said the buses might have an accident at any time due to defective tyres. He said students’ lives are very valuable to him and transport service was temporarily suspended to protect the lives of the students.

The VC said the official process for buying new tyres for buses is in progress and soon the transport service will be restored.

Published in Dawn, October 19th, 2023