The Education Department will have to re-advertise for a procurement order or rely on the chief minister to relax the rules, after Shahbaz Sharif announced that the government would hand out 125,000 free computers to the brightest students in the province.
Last year, the government had said 100,000 laptops would be distributed to students of public colleges and universities. But on January 10, Sharif announced on his official Facebook page that 125,000 laptops would be distributed.
The department invited expressions of interest in November for the purchase of 100,000 laptops in an open bid.
Three firms expressed an interest and the procurement order was awarded to Dell, which offered the computers at Rs37,700 each, with bags.
The government earmarked Rs2 billion in the 2011-12 budget for the laptops, though the cost of 100,000 laptops was agreed at Rs3.7 billion. The additional funds are to be provided by the Finance Department either as a supplementary grant or by diversion of funds reserved for other schemes.
On January 10, after receiving thousands of requests from students on his Facebook page, the chief minister announced that 125,000 laptops would be awarded. However, the Education Department has yet to receive formal instruction from the Chief Minister’s Secretariat regarding the increased order.
Joudat Ayaz, the additional project director, said the government planned to provide free laptops to the top students in 130 post-graduate colleges and universities. The delivery of laptops will start during the first week of February, he said, as Dell had pledged that the first consignment would arrive by then.
He said the department had two options regarding the increased number of laptops to be handed out. Under the Punjab Procurement Authority Rules, the department can increase a procurement order by 15 per cent. To increase the order by 25 per cent, as in this case, the chief minister would have to issue an order relaxing the rules or the department would have to re-advertise for bids for 125,000 laptops.
A potential cause for delay lies in the verification of credentials of applicants. The department has already received more than 3,000 complaints from applicants about mistakes in the information provided about them to the department by their colleges and universities.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 19th, 2012.
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I wonder if we can call the student with less than 70% to be the brightest. And If a country where hundreds of thousands of people go to bed without a dinner, can afford to spend Rs 3.7 billion on these "brightest" students.
Its worth appreciating move by CM to help the youth to pad up themselves technically in this technological era.... But it will be much more appreciated if it is finalized and they dont quit govt as well or avoid any other political crap.
Excellent initiative. Some really good programmes are being started in Punjab
Great Job..CM Shahbaz Sharif