KARACHI, Jan 20: The Higher Education Commission has no bias against private universities, but it wants them to practice what they are required under the government's charter, said Dr Atta-ur-Rahman, chairman of the commission.

Speaking at a dinner-reception hosted in his honour by the chartered private universities and degree-awarding institutes on Wednesday, Dr Atta replied to a host of questions placed by the heads and owners of the private institutes.

The HEC chief said he personally felt that a university, irrespective of the fact that it was being run by the government or private party, should behave and start delivering as per its recognized status from the day one, otherwise, students and their parents who pay their hard-earned money to them for higher education would feel cheated.

He clarified to the representatives of the private institutions that the purpose of visits by the provincial governments and different HEC's exercises on rating and ranking of the degree-awarding institutions was not meant to harass them, but to ensure an overall improvement in the delivery of higher education.

Speaking about the problems confronting the private institutions, speakers maintained that they were fed up of visits by representatives of the controlling authority, evaluators from government agencies and other inspectors.

A head of the management education institution said since the institutions were in their evolutionary period, it would be inappropriate to expect them to be fit in all respect all at once.

Some of the participants were disturbed over issuance of an advertisement regarding ranking of private institutions or list of unauthorized institutions by the HEC.

Some others were of the view that HEC should hold meetings with private universities on a regular basis and move the government for a uniform policy and combined body of government agencies in the case of private universities.

There was another suggestion that private universities be allowed to hire PhDs as adjunct faculty members for the time being.

Replying to points raised by speakers, Dr Atta said under the federal cabinet's decision, it was mandatory upon private institutions to overcome infrastructural or academic and other deficiencies as already pointed out to them or being asked for before February 2007, otherwise, they would be subjected to a process of delisting and restricted to the status of a college only.

He said the government was very clear about the quality and standard of higher education and would not compromise on it.

It sounds strange that you have a university in the making, but call it a university, enjoying government charter, he added and mentioned that a university should have a qualified faculty, the essential ingredient for each of its department, otherwise, it should withhold the deficient department for some time.

He claimed that the country has not been able to have a single genuine university of standard so far, but the shortfall could be overcome only once we sit together and work for getting PhDs of standard.

He informed that the HEC was already placing a proposal before the government for grant of government lands in cities to private institutions on reduced rate, enabling them to save money under the head of land and utilize that for meeting some other yardsticks.

He said the government has agreed, in principle, to a proposal that private universities interested in hiring foreign PhD holders be given a matching grant from the government.