Onward with scientific research

The inauguration of three projects costing Rs 26 million at the University of Sindh the other day, will certainly be viewed as an epochal event in so far as focus on higher education in this province is concerned.
All three projects have their own undisputed importance; but from all indications, the pride of place can be seen belonging to the well-equipped Tissue Culture/Molecular Biology Laboratory set up at the Department of Physiology at a cost of Rs 11 million, jointly funded by the University and the Higher Education Commission.
The founder faculty member of the department and former Vice Chancellor of the university, Dr Abdul Qadir Ansari who was chief guest, laid emphasis on the need for research on key problems faced by the society, saying how essential it is that the university teachers not only utilise the facilities available but also see to it that their students after leaving the university make it their motto to serve the society with knowledge and capability.
Having been founder of the department, Professor Ansari aptly recalled that 30 years back he had floated of idea for setting up the institute of biological sciences by merging relative disciplines. The department was established initially with physiology as specialisation subject, with onward development, one step setting the pace for another in the desired direction, thereby, the department managed to build not only well-established laboratories but numerous facilities too.
Inspired by these developments, the Vice Chancellor of the University of Sindh, Mazharul Haq Siddiqui, gave the glad tidings of initiating efforts to introduce physiology as a subject at the college level, asking the department to move a proposal to the Academic Council for approval, indicating that the university would provide all the required facilities for research and academic activities so that its graduates equipped themselves with purposeful knowledge.
Notably, on his part, the head of the department, Dr G.M. Seehar, aptly remarked that with the setting up of the laboratory and inauguration of a new building and also a Tissue Culture/Molecular Biology Lab by the grace of Almighty Allah, the dreams of the teachers and students had come true. He emphasised that the universities must so organise themselves as to serve the state and the society and solve their problems through study and research. More to this, he also stated that under instructions from HEC, the departments had adopted a new syllabus, 4-year (8 semesters) B.S. programme from the year 2002 and also that the revised syllabus of physiology would be adopted in Academic Year 2008.
He said that with the establishment of the laboratory, the university could perform the molecular diagnosis test for Hepatitis (B and C), AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome), and cancer diseases. Referring to the achievements thus far as, he pointed out that, researchers of the department were now involved in the molecular research as they had amplified the gene suspected for diabetes and obesity, and also the gene suspected for the cardiac diseases.
He elaborated that with the ongoing efforts of the government and HEC in support of education and research, the department had started yielding results which developed countries were already enjoying. Pointing out that the Sindh University had developed these technologies from the base and trained the personnel with deep understanding, Professor Seehar said that if we want to get the same benefits as enjoyed by developed countries we must take bold steps so as to solve our own problems in the desired manner.
As he noted, the establishment of such a laboratory at the department of physiology one step forward on the path and this will not only serve as a means to solve our problems but will also become a platform to produce the people with enough capabilities to understand the problems of the future and find to their solutions so that these capabilities start multiplying with passage of time.