HYDERABAD, Sept 17: The Sindh chapter of the Federation of Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association has expressed reservations over introduction of four-year bachelor programme. It demanded that the programme be held in abeyance unless full discussions were held on the issue.
The meeting was held at the MUET Jamshoro recently and its minutes were faxed to Dawn on Saturday.
Prof Mushtaq Mirani presided over the meeting.
Representatives of Sindh Agriculture, Karachi, NED Karachi, Quaid-i-Awam Nawabshah, Shah Latif Khairpur and Mehran universities attended the meeting.
It appreciated the decision of the vice-chancellor of the Peshawar University to promote teachers who had been waiting for years for their promotions due to non-availability of relevant posts.
It demanded that other universities, particularly those of Sindh, should emulate the Peshawar University and address cases of the university teachers.
The meeting demanded that a notification be issued by the government to authorize vice-chancellors of Sindh’s public sector universities for issuing NOC to teachers for overseas travels.
It demanded that development funds for universities of Sindh be increased and there should be strict monitoring by internal and external organizations for proper and timely utilization of funds released for promotion of higher education.
It expressed concern over appointment of retired government functionaries as vice-chancellors and on other administrative posts.
It said except for Mehran and Dow medical universities all public universities of the province were being governed by former bureaucrats.
The meeting called upon the Sindh government to emulate Punjab, NWFP and Balochistan provinces in setting up new universities or campuses of existing universities at the district level.
It appreciated the Sindh University’s initiative for establishing new campuses in Badin and Mirpurkhas and urged the education department to set up new universities in Larkana, Sukkur, Ghotki, Jacobabad, Dadu, Shikarpur, Naushahro Feroze and Thatta.
Expressing concern over increase in fees in the public universities of Sindh, particularly in commercial disciplines, it demanded that fees be reduced and no increase be effected during the next five years.
It demanded that all universities should provide full scholarship in all disciplines to at least 30 per cent of enrolled students.
It urged the vice-chancellors to take initiative and seek HEC’s support to link universities with foreign universities for transfer of technology, increasing teachers capacities and research and academic activities.
It demanded that the University of Sindh should withdraw charge sheet against Dr Mehtab Ali Shah and other teachers as they had full right of dissent and freedom of expression.
The meeting opposed any move by the Sindh government to ban teachers’ association.
It demanded that harassment of office-bearers of Quaid-i-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology Nawabshah by the vice-chancellor be stopped and postgraduate programmes from diploma to doctoral studies be started without delay.
It pointed out that the teachers of the Sindh Agriculture University had been waiting for their promotion for over 16 to 20 years which was great injustice with them.
SBCEA: The Sindh Bureau of Curriculum Employees Association has opposed shifting of teachers training centre from Hyderabad to other places.
The meeting observed that the shifting of these centre will create enormous difficulties for low grade employees.