KARACHI, Nov 19: A number of government colleges in the city are facing shortage of teaching and non-teaching staff while some of them are being run without permanent heads. Scores of posts in different categories have been vacant in colleges for many years.

During a survey of colleges in Baldia Town, this scrib learnt that the posts that fell vacant due to retirement or death were not filled despite the passage of many years. For some reason professors from other city colleges were unwilling to be transferred to Baldia, SITE or Orangi towns.

A professor proposed that it should be made mandatory for all the new lecturers to spend at least three years in the institutions located in rural and slum areas, adding that the policy of immature transfers on political basis should be stopped.

Some professors pleading anonymity said they had been working in the same institutions for many years and were not transferred even after completion of their tenure as they had no clout or influence. If the government did not take drastic steps for filling the vacancies and approval of Statement of New Expenditures the colleges would cease to function.

There are only three colleges, two for boys and one for girls, in Baldia Town besides a few mono-technical colleges.

Govt Girls’ Degree Science and Arts College on main Baldia-Orangi Road in Saeedabad, has been without a permanent principal since June 2003.

Established over a decade ago, the college building had developed wide cracks and after demolition some firms were awarded contracts for its reconstruction.

During a visit to the college, its staff members told this scribe that contracts were awarded to three different firms, but work was stopped midway. It was said that the works and services department after dispatching seven reminders published an ad in a newspaper on September 8, warning the contractors to complete the construction work within 10 days otherwise legal action would be taken. “But it seems that the warning has also been ignored” commented a professor.

Classes were being held in the under construction building, where water and toilet facilities for students were unavailable. Science labs could not be used during the last two years. Besides, termites have destroyed the furniture, doors and windows.

Though in the statement of new expenditures, the college’s requirement is 24 lecturers, there are only 11 teachers at present. The departments of Civics, Pakistan Studies, Botany, Islamic Studies, Education and Economics have no teacher, while three posts of lecturers are vacant in English, Urdu and Chemistry departments.

Telephone lines at the college have been dead for the last four months. There is no watchman and the only sweeper at the college is overburdened. As per the SNEs, the college needs three sweepers.

Admissions in degree classes were not offered owing to these problems. The number of students in the college is about 500. In order to overcome the crisis, the college management has hired services of some cooperative lecturers on a fixed monthly salary of Rs4,000.

The Government College for Boys, located at Bismillah Chowk near police training centre, Sector 4/E Saeedabad, started functioning about three years ago though the building is still under construction. There is no permanent teacher at the college as the statement of new expenditures has not been approved yet. A senior professor has been assigned the duty to run the affairs as a principal.

The college principal told Dawn that three cooperative lecturers had been appointed on daily wages. Science subjects were not taught due to shortage of teachers while 400 students in commerce and humanities groups were taking regular classes, he said.

The college has been without water while the electricity connection is illegal.

The same conditions prevail at Government Boys College Sector-4. The building was constructed some years back, but the authorities concerned terming it substandard ordered its renovation. Neither the statement of new expenditures has been approved nor have classes been started yet.

A number of colleges, mono-technical institutions and commercial colleges at different towns, particularly in Orangi, are facing staff shortage. The girls higher secondary school at Sector 4-G, Baldia was inaugurated on May 20, but classes have not started so far.

The Govt Mono-Technical Institute, located at Saeedabad, has been closed due to delay in the approval of its statement of new expenditures. Thieves have taken away doors, windows, electric wiring, iron grills and accessories from the washrooms of the building. The low boundary wall was giving easy access to unscrupulous elements to enter the building. After shifting of its furniture and record to the polytechnic institute Lyari, the building has been handed over to the Rangers.