AJK, G-B students get 58 more seats in Sindh varsities
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah gave on Tuesday the approval for increasing the number of seats reserved for students from Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) and Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) by 58, from the existing 162, in the province's public varsities.
He consented to the proposition while presiding over a Universities and Boards Department meeting, which was attended by Sindh government spokesperson and advisor to the CM on law environment and coastal development Murtaza Wahab, Universities and Boards department secretary Alamuddin Bullo and principal secretary to the CM Sajid Jamal Abro, among others.
During the meeting, the CM was told that there were 25 public universities, including medical and engineering, in Sindh and the institutions collectively had 162 seats reserved for students from AJK and G-B.
He was further informed that the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council and Higher Education Commission (HEC) had granted permission for the enhancement of seats by 58 in nine public-sector universities and the permission for increasing the number in remaining 16 was awaited.
Number of seats
Presently, there are two seats each for AJK and G-B students at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro, three each at the NED University of Engineering and Technology (NEDUET), two each at the Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro and two each at Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur. Besides, AJK has seven seats at Sindh Agriculture University, Tando Jam, where G-B has four, while 34 seats are collectively reserved for students from both the regions at the University of Karachi (KU).
Following the approval for increasing the number of seats, AJK will now have four more seats and G-B 11 more at the University of Sindh, Jamshoro, each of them will have five seats at the NEDUET, three each at the Dow University of Health Sciences, 13 each at the Dawood University of Engineering and Technology, one each at the Peoples University of Medical and Health Sciences and four each at Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur. Moreover, there will be five seats each for AJK and G-B at the Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro, seven seats for AJK and eight for G-B at Sindh Agriculture University, Jamshoro and collectively 50 seats at the KU.
Congratulating students from AJK and G-B on the development, the CM expressed hope that they would be able to benefit from the enhancement of seats.
Joint plan, separate responsibilities
Separately, the CM met federal HEC chairperson Dr Tariq Banuri and told him that the Sindh government would be monitoring and evaluating universities operating under its charter, while the authority to accredit them resided with the federal HEC.
"However, a joint work plan may be prepared by the provincial government and the HEC, and floated in the Council of Common Interests (CCI) meeting for approval," the CM added.
Elaborating further, the CM said that under the 18th Amendment, all provinces had set up their separate HECs and since a commission was also operating under the federal government, there was a need to define responsibilities. He said this could be achieved by the provincial and federal HECs devising a joint plan under the Universities and Boards Department and getting it approved at a CCI meeting.
Dr Banuri appreciated the CM showing interest in finding a practical solution to end the "deadlock" reached due to the tussle between the federal and Sindh HECs.
The Sindh Higher Education Commission was established in 2013 after the Sindh Assembly rushed through the Sindh Higher Education Commission Act, 2013, to set up its own provincial body that would be autonomous and would have the authority to verify degrees awarded by any provincial institute.
Ever since, the body has been a bone of contention between the provincial and federal government, with the federal Higher Education Commission repeatedly claiming that "the Sindh government was trying to destroy the federal status of the HEC".