The federal government has initiated the process of appointing a new chairman of Higher Education Commission (HEC), which has currently more than Rs 95 billion budgetary allocation for the promotion of higher education in the country. Official sources revealed to Business Recorder that the current Chairman HEC Dr Mukhtar Ahmed is going to complete his four-year term on April 15, 2018 and the government has decided not to give him an extension for another four-year term.
Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has approved a six-member committee to select new chairperson of HEC and Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training has issued a notification in this regard after approving six names to be included in the committee.
The six-member committee will be headed by convener Syed Baber Ali while Dr Sania Nishtar, Dr Faisal Bari, Shehnaz Wazir Ali, Mirza Qasim Baig and Secretary Education will be members of the search committee. The committee has been mandated to search for the new head of HEC with specific terms of reference. It has been directed to set the criteria in terms of age, qualification and experience.
Sources said that there are seven front-runners who applied for the coveted position of chairman HEC: Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan, Vice-Chancellor University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Dr Masoom Yasinzai, Rector International Islamic University, Islamabad, Dr Junaid Zaidi, Executive Director COMSATS, Dr Mohammad Nizamuddin, Chairperson Punjab Higher Education Commission, ECO Science Foundation (ECOSF) President, Professor Dr Manzoor Hussain Soomro and Dr Mohammad Ali Shaikh, Vice-Chancellor of Sindh Madressatul Islam University, Karachi. According to sources the sitting chairman HEC did not apply, but was nominated on academic, civil society request and has been added to the list of candidates.
The six-member committee will propose at least three suitable and eligible candidates for the approval of the controlling authority. As per the HEC ordinance the PM shall appoint a person of international eminence and proven ability who has made significant contribution to higher education as teacher, researcher or administrator.
The HEC chairman enjoys an equal status of state minister and regulates the standards of higher education in federal charted universities in the country.
The government earmarked Rs 95.8 billion for HEC including Rs 35.6 billion under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) and Rs 60.2 billion for recurrent budget for the current fiscal year.
By 2017, HEC awarded over 251,000 scholarships to Pakistani students including among others, 8,700 indigenous, 9,550 overseas, and 9, 500 need-based scholarships. As many as 200,700 students of 114 districts have benefited from Prime Minister's Fee Reimbursement Scheme for less developed areas. Under the Prime Minister's Laptop Scheme, Rs 26.46 billion has been earmarked for provision of laptops to talented students for 2013-2018.
Official said HEC started its journey with only 59 universities in the country, 2.6 percent gross enrolment, 800 publications, and 3,110 PhDs, however the number of higher education institutions (HEIs) has now reached 188 with 9 per cent gross enrolment, 12,000 publications, and 11, 960 PhDs. Female enrolment has now reached 48 percent, as HEC is promoting equal higher education opportunities to maintain gender equity.
As a whole, 41 percent of HEC funding goes to human resource development, 33 percent to ensuring equitable access, 23 percent to ICT development and the remaining four percent to other necessities. HEC has so far allocated funds for construction of 505 academic blocks in universities, out of which 357 blocks have been completed and 148 blocks are under-construction. HEC eyes ensuring establishment of at least one institution in each district by 2019 without any compromise on quality of education. The Commission has so far closed down around 450 MS and PhD programmes of different universities, as they failed to fulfill the HEC criteria.
Under interim placement of fresh PhDs Programme launched by HEC, 3016 PhD holders have been offered jobs as Assistant Professors in Pakistani HEIs with conditions that during a one-year serving period, their host institutions will announce respective positions to provide the inducted PhDs with equal opportunity to compete. As of the statistics till July 2017, 55 percent PhDs have been inducted by universities and 18 percent have secured jobs in other educational institutions.
However, a senior official said that HEC is in some bad news nowadays, as the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) has decided to conduct an inquiry against the alleged illegal appointment of the HEC Chairman Dr Mukhtar Ahmed, who is about to complete his tenure. In the latest example of violation of rules, Ahmed was appointed in BPS-21 in violation of the HEC rules. According to rules chairman HEC is allowed to make appointments in up to BPS-18.
HEC chairman has reportedly appointed Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University, Rawalpindi (PMAS AAUR) Quality Control Director (BPS-21) Professor Dr Riaz Ahmad as HEC Quality Assurance Advisor (BPS-21) on deputation basis for a period of one year. The post had been vacant since the last three years and was being run on ad hoc basis. Further executive director HEC is reportedly involved in a plagiarism case.
Comments
Comments are closed.