THE students of the Sindh Agriculture University’s Umerkot Campus have been protesting against the closure of their campus, asking the administration to reopen it, but that has not resulted in any favourable response from those concerned.

The campus not only caters to students from Umerkot, but also to thousands from Tharparkar and Sanghar districts. The future of nearly 1,500 students, many of whom belonging to low-income families, is at stake. One fails to understand why the university administration decided to shut down the campus immediately after the enrolment process, especially when it has collected the relevant fee.

The said campus remains the only ray of hope for students in the region in terms of charting out a future for themselves and their families. Closing it down is not only an administrative mistake, but also a policy blunder.

The administration needs to review the decision, hear the concerns of its students, and immediately take steps to reopen the campus. If an agriculture university campus cannot be run and sustained in an agriculture-rich area, where should the campuses of such an institution be set up?

Ali Nawaz Rahimoo
Umerkot

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2026