HEC barred from issuing NOCs for new universities

Federal Education Minister Rana Tanveer Hussain has barred the Higher Education Commission (HEC) from allowing the setting up of new universities and higher education institutes in the country.

In a letter to the HEC chairman, the federal education minister has urged the regulatory body to ensure quality education instead of new issuing no-objection certificates (NOCs) for the establishment of new universities and higher education institutes at the federal and provincial levels.

HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmed said that he concurred with the federal education minister’s point of view in raising the standard of education instead of allowing more universities in the country.

In the letter, the federal education minister has asked the HEC chief not to issue further NOCs for setting up new universities.

The federal education minister further urged the HEC chief to take action against universities operating illegally and without NOCs and their details should be made public through print, electronic and social media.

He said that 70 per cent of the population of Pakistan consists of youth and the standard of education and skills for them can play a vital role in contributing to the national economy. “This objective cannot be achieved without raising the standard of education of universities,” the minister said.

In the letter, the federal education minister has also highlighted related sections of the Higher Education Commission Ordinance 2002 which clearly mentions the authority of the HEC in issuing the NOC for any university or higher education institute.

In the letter, the federal minister has also quoted the 44th meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI), which has agreed that after the 18th constitutional amendment, the HEC was the only regulatory body in the country to set standards for higher education.

“An increase in the number of universities without standards would be useless. No new NOC should be issued for any institution or university,” he said.

HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmed said that the commission also wanted to take action against all universities operating without NOCs.

“And we also will take more steps to ensure quality education. We will not only stop issuing NOCs to private universities but also public sector universities till further order. We will completely follow the instruction of the federal education minister. No university can operate without the NOC of the HEC,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 9^th, 2022.