Govt strips colleges of autonomy

Public sector institutions raised fees after getting new status in 2010

LAHORE:

The Punjab government has withdrawn a project launched by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif during his rule on the province to give autonomy to colleges operating in the public sector.

After a notification issued by the government, no public sector college in the province can be declared an autonomous institution, The Express Tribune has learnt.

The Punjab cabinet abolished the policy of the former chief minister and withdrew the autonomous status given to 18 government colleges in 2010. After the notification, the institutions will be run like other government colleges of the province.

The professors and lectures had opposed the policy of granting the colleges autonomy, claiming that it had adversely affected the academic activities.

The provincial government had introduced the policy in 2010 and started a four-year BS honours degree programme at the college level.

The public sector college unions launched protests and opposed autonomy for the colleges, apprehending that it would damage the higher education sector in the province.

However, the PML-N government implemented the policy and announced an autonomous status for some big colleges in Lahore and other cities. 

The Punjab Higher Education Department froze the funds of the autonomous colleges and advised them to generate their own financial resources.

The colleges suffered a lot due to the unavailability of funds and lack of infrastructure to start the four-year programme.

The college teachers unions continued opposing the scheme and demanded that the current government abolish it.

The province's 26 government colleges were given autonomy, of which 18 were enjoying the same status, while others had been elevated to the university level by the  PTI-led government.

The higher education department, through the notification, has abolished the autonomous status of the colleges located in Rawalpindi, Sahiwal, Bahawalpur, Dera Ghazi Khan, Lahore, Sargodha and Gujranwala divisions. They have also been renamed with government colleges.

"The colleges have been advised to immediately change their names in accordance with the policy and write on their main gates and prospectus that they are government colleges," said a senior official of the higher education department.

The official said the colleges would now get funds according to the policy that had been in place before 2010.

He expressed hope that the decision would give opportunity to common people to study in the selected colleges which had increased their fees after getting autonomy.

The official said the BS degree programmes would continue in the colleges more students would be able to apply for admissions to them on merit because of lower fees.

Punjab Professors and Lecturers Association president Prof Tariq Kaleem said, "Big colleges in the past were declared autonomous against our wishes and they were facing administrative issues.

We struggled a lot to abolish the autonomy of these colleges and in this connection we held meetings with various departments.

Our community is happy after the new decision of the government."

Published in The Express Tribune, January 12^th, 2023.