President Masood pledges to transform AJK varsity into technology hub

Describing University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (UAJK) as the mother of all public sector universities, AJK President Sardar Masood Khan has directed the management to make more efforts to turn the institution into a centre of excellence for cutting edge new technologies.

He expressed these views while addressing the administration and faculty members of the university after a briefing on the occasion of a visit to the newly-constructed King Abdullah Campus located at Chattar Kalass near Muzaffarabad on Thursday.

“The King Abdullah Campus of the university will not only become a centre of knowledge and high-quality education but also open up new doors for economic and social development for the people of Muzaffarabad and adjoining districts.” 

The AJK president said Vice-Chancellor Professor Dr Kaleem Abbasi and the management of the university deserve tribute for the hard work they did in the completion of this state-of-the-art campus built in collaboration with Saudi Fund for Development and the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan.

He said that the students graduated from the university are not only playing their excellent role in the development and prosperity of the country in Azad Kashmir and Pakistan, but many of them acquiring further education in the world reputed universities like George Town University, Oxford and Cambridge.

President Masood said that he is\ very happy to know that the University of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and others are launching programmes like Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big Data and Nanotechnology keeping in view requirements of modern times, which would significantly help the youth to get a world class education and to keep pace with the youth of other countries in the race for development.

He said with modern and quality education, Azad Kashmir would not only move towards self-reliance but also acquire the potential to become the engine of economic growth for the entire Pakistan.

President Masood urged the management of the university to plan for a digital revolution keeping in view the needs of the future and to make Muzaffarabad's Jhelum Valley a Silicon Valley to provide an opportunity to the students to use their knowledge and skills for the development and prosperity of the country and the nation.

He said that Dr Abbasi has full support of the government and the presidency and he is rightly expected to use his leadership skills to make the university a hub of knowledge and to transform the youth into valuable human capital.

The president pledged to take all measures for provision of uninterrupted supply of electricity, Internet facility and other educational needs to the King Abdullah Campus to improve and enhance the learning environment for the students.

Earlier, President Masood, who is also the chancellor of the university, was warmly received by Dr Abbasi, Registrar Dr Ayesha Sohail, Dean Faculty of Sciences Prof. Dr Ghulam Murtaza, Dean Faculty of Social Sciences Prof. Dr Haroon Al-Rasheed, Dean Faculty of Health Sciences Dr Bashir-ur-Rehman Kanth, Director Finance Prof. Dr Siddique Awan, Heads of Departments, Faculty Members and other university officers.

The AJK president paid a detailed visit to the newly-constructed digital library, Department of Computer Science and Information Technology, Department of Botany and Auditorium of the University where he was briefed by Prof. Dr Rabia, Prof. Dr Rehana Kausar, Head of Department of Botany while Dr Ansar Yaseen, Director Planning and Development of the university gave a comprehensive briefing to the president.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Abbasi thanked the president for visiting the campus, saying under his able leadership and guidance, the university has achieved many milestones in the last three to four years and expressed hope that the journey of educational development will continue in the future under the guidance of the president.