HEC tells varsities to fix houses, engage students

Urges more counselling opportunities for students, monitoring of erratic behaviour

ISLAMABAD: The Higher Education Commission (HEC) has urged universities to institute effective protocols and programmes to curb opportunities of radicalisation of students and universities staff while strengthening security arrangements on their campuses.

In a letter issued to vice chancellors, rectors and heads of universities, HEC Chairperson Dr Mukhtar Ahmed has said that some of the recent acts of violence and terrorism in the country exposed the involvement of university students in such disastrous incidents.

This is quite unfortunate and underscores that intolerance, radicalisation, and extremism are on the rise, and universities present no exception to this ominous challenge, he has said in the letter.

It further states that HEC has been constantly sensitising the top leadership of universities of possible security threats, its manifestations, and how negatives potencies plan, approach and organise such brutalities.

Citing the Vice Chancellors’ Committee meeting held in May 2017, the letter says connection and coordination with students should be strengthened and faculty visibility may be ensured in all social spaces across universities so as to eliminate disconnect with the students and between faculty themselves.



The letter emphasises mentoring and counselling of students while stressing that it becomes a regular activity on campus. “Any unusual behaviour must be carefully monitored and analysed,” the letter maintains. It urges that directorates of students should be established for registering problems of students and offering solutions to them.

It further directs for promoting tutorials, sports and extracurricular activities for constant engagement with students. It advocates holding of public lectures to promote understanding, tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

The Vice Chancellors’ Committee Meeting was followed up with a seminar organised in collaboration with the Inter-Services Public Relations on the role of youth in rejecting extremism at GHQ, Rawalpindi wherein a broad spectrum of realities and difficulties were discussed and the universities’ leadership was encouraged to institute sustainable programmes and processes to address the threat of radicalisation. 



The chairperson has further reiterated that higher education sector is expected to not only rid any involvement in acts of extremism but also take measures that engage youth and students in gainful academic and social activities envisaging professionalism, higher moral and ethical conduct, tolerance and respect for divergence.

He expressed his confidence that with the university heads’ persistent personal involvement and supervision, Higher Education Institutions will be made better and indisputable places of learning, training and societal development.