ISLAMABAD, April 20: As many as 329 posts of lecturers, assistant professors, associate professors and professors are lying vacant in the federal government colleges, the National Assembly was told on Wednesday. Federal Education Minister Javed Ashraf Qazi in a written reply told the lower house that 211 posts of lecturers, 98 of assistant professors, 17 of associate professors and three of professors were yet to be filled in the federal government colleges. The question was put forward by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) chairman, Dr Attaur Rehman.

Of the 98 vacant posts of assistant professors, nine posts are to be filled through direct recruitment, while the rest of 89 fall into the category of promotion.

Similarly, of the 17 vacant posts of associate professors, nine are to be filled through direct recruitment and eight through promotion. All the three vacant posts of professors are to be filled through promotion.

Mr Qazi told the house that a requisition of 184 vacant posts meant for direct recruitment had already been sent to the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) and requisition of the remaining 55 would be referred in 2005 as per instructions of the FPSC.

Further, the minister said, 62 promotion cases had been decided in a departmental promotion committee meeting held on March 3, 2005 and it was expected that these vacant posts will be filled during the current academic session (2005-2006) tentatively.

The minister was also asked if there was any proposal to establish a regulatory authority for registration of private educational institutions throughout the country. To this question, the minister said education was on the concurrent list of the constitution wherein federal and provincial governments could draw up legislation.

He said the provinces had already enacted control over private educational institutions through promulgation of ordinances, however, no such legislation had been carried out in the federal capital and private educational institutions were working without any control.

However, a case is under process for enactment of a law to establish a regulatory authority to regulate the functioning of the private educational institutions in Islamabad, the minister said.