NEWS & VIEWS
Higher Education Commission, Pakistan
June-July 2013
First Workshop
for University Treasurers
P-3
5 Uni
versities Win Erasm
us Mundus Fund
Universities
ing
mus
nding
P-6
Work
shop on B
line Stat
Worksho
BII--DRS & On
pplica
tion
Online
Statiisstical
tical A
Ap
licatio
P-2
IST
hieevves
0011:2
008
IST Ac
Ach
ification
es ISO
ISO 9900
:20
08 Cert
Certif
P-13
CIIT Wins
st
1 FPCCI
Achievement
Award
P - 22
Table of Contents
3
5
22
First Workshop for
University
Treasurers
35 HEC scholars
Leave for Germany
st
CIIT Wins 1 FPCCI
Achievement
Award
News & Views is published every month. No part of
this publication may be reproduced in any form
without prior written permission of the publisher.
The views expressed by authors in the articles is
their sole responsibility and not of HEC. The
Commission would like to thank all the institutions
and individuals who contributed information and
photographs for this Magazine.
2
Training Workshop on BI-DRS & Online
Statistical Application
6
Pakistani Students, HEC Officials Visit France
6
5 Universities Win Erasmus Mundus Funding
10
BUITEMS Fosters Relations with Potential
Donors, Builds Strong Alumni Relations
12
HEC Post-Doctorate Scholar Completes Hightech Research Project at Massey University
13
Training Course for English Faculty of Colleges
of Faisalabad
15
KMU Workshop on Advanced Techniques in
Data Analysis
15
NUST Seminar on Pak-US Higher Education
Initiative on Civic Engagement
19
Conference on Extremism and Terrorism in
Pakistan
23
NED Symposium on Industry Academia
Collaboration
24
Seminar on Global Vision of Islamic Banking, Its
Implications in Pakistan
27
MAJU Conference on Bioinformatics &
Computational Biology
28
UoP Workshop on Zoonotic Diseases
Editor
Aayesha Ikram
Graphic Designer
Raja Ahmad Nadeem
Reporter
Waseem Khaliqdad
Publisher:
Higher Education
Commission, Pakistan
News & Views
Training Workshop on BI-DRS &
Online Statistical Application
The Statistical Information Unit of Higher
Education Commission (HEC) recently
organized a series of two-day workshops on
Business Intelligence Dynamic Reporting
System (BI-DRS) and Online Statistical
Application for Universities.
The first workshop was held at HEC Islamabad
while the second was organized at Mehran
University of Engineering and Technology,
Jamshoro.
data through online application from Pakistani
HEIs. He further added that HEC has hired the
services of M/s Techlogix Pvt. Ltd for
development and implementation of BI-DRS
(Business Intelligence Dynamic Reporting
system).
The resource persons for the training were Mr.
Javed Memon, Dy. Director HEC, and Mr. Muteer
Arshad and Mr. Tahir Badar from Techlogix. Over
50 members from 10 universities attended the
workshops.
“The project was initiated with the aim that
national database for higher education
statistics will be developed to have further
planning and decision making based on factual
information and the similar system will be
trickled down to universities. In this regard,
Higher Education Statistical Information
System was also launched,” he said.
In her welcome address, Ms. Zia Batool, Director
General (Quality Assurance/Statistics) HEC shed
light on the importance of university statistics
and problems faced by HEC in manual data
collection.
She said that the workshop would definitely
prove helpful for future policy decisions and
summary of each university on major attributes
will also be made available to Vice Chancellors/
senior management of universities to have
further planning in the right direction based on
factual information.
The second day session commenced with
hands-on training session on online data entry
software. Speaking to the participants at MUET,
the Vice Chancellor Dr. A.Q Rajput appreciated
the efforts and initiatives of HEC for
maintaining the warehouse for data collection
and overall statistics of HEIs.
The first day session was
focused on the lectures on
online data collection system,
demonstration of reports
based on the data entered in
database for better
understanding of the system.
M r. J a v e d b r i e f e d t h e
participants on collection of
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News & Views
HEC Organizes First Workshop
for University Treasurers
The Finance Division of the
Higher Education
Commission (HEC) recently
organized a training cum
workshop on Financial
Management Reforms for
Treasurers of the public sector
universities and degree
awarding institutions. This
was the first event of this
magnitude and was
conducted in two groups. The
workshop of the first batch
was held at Nathia Gali from
April 22- 26, 2013. The
workshop for the second
batch was held at the
Resource Centre of the Fatima
Jinnah Women University,
Murree from May 27-30,
2013.
The objective of the
workshop was to study how
to bring reforms in financial
management system and to
devise a strategy for funds
mobilization in universities to
make them financially sound.
It is part of HEC's continuous
efforts to develop Financial
Management and
Accounting Systems across
the sector to enhance
t r a n s pa re n c y, a c c u r a c y,
timeliness and credibility of
financial reporting.
Welcoming the participants,
D r. M u k h t a r A h m e d ,
Executive Director HEC
emphasized that universities
should take concrete steps to
enhance and diversify
revenue generation from
their own resources instead of
relying heavily on
government grants and fee
from students. “In this regard,
the university treasurer's
office can play leading role by
finding out of the box
solutions,” he added.
Mr. Ghulam Mujtaba Kayani,
Adviser Finance, said that
HEC's Finance Division is
responsible for arranging
recurring funds from
Government of Pakistan for
more than 117 Federally
funded universities and DAIs.
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The Adviser stressed that
treasury departments of
universities must strive to
keep all financial transaction
within the prescribed rules
and procedure. Khawaja
Zahid Hussain, Coordinator
BAIS, HEC gave a brief
presentation on the
implementation of SAP based
Enterprise Resource Planning
(ERP) solution in HEC that
includes all modules
integrated with each other
like Finance and Budgeting,
Project System, Procurement,
Fixed Assets, Salary Payment
and Human Resource
Management.
The resource persons Mr.
Mubashar Ali, FCMA, CE of
SKIM and his associate Mr.
Iftikhar Ahmed dilated upon
different topics including
Financial Management,
Adoption of New Accounting
Model (NAM), Budgeting and
Internal Controls, Accounting
Policies and Procedures,
Financial Reporting (in-year
News & Views
and annual), Government
Audit Effectiveness (both
internal and external), and
Revenue Generation Ideas.
Another important topic was
“Revenue Generation and
Diversification of Revenues
by Universities”. It generated
an intense and constructive
debate among participants
culminating in different new
i d e a s , l i ke C o n d u c t i n g
Applied Research,
Introducing New Courses for
Income Generation, Better
Funds Management,
Encouraging Relevant
Business Activities, Exploring
Rental Income Possibilities,
and Non Traditional Services.
In the concluding sessions of
the workshop, certificates
were distributed among the
participants. The chief guest
of the first batch was Dr. Altaf
Ali G. Shaikh, Pro-Vice
Chancellor, Isra University,
Islamabad. While chief guest
for the second batch was Dr.
Samina Amin Qadir, Vice
Chancellor, Fatima Jinnah
Women University.
NBEAC Inspection Committee Visits BUITEMS
The Accreditation Inspection Committee
of HEC's National Business Education
Accreditation (NBEAC) recently visited
Balochistan University of Information
Te c h n o l o g y , E n g i n e e r i n g a n d
Management Sciences (BUITEMS),
Quetta for accreditation of BBA and MBA
programmes. BUITEMS is the 18 th
institution visited by evaluators of NBEAC.
The purpose of this peer-review visit was
to assess and evaluate current standard of
BBA and MBA programmes offered at
BUITEMS Quetta. NBEAC of Higher
Education Commission has developed
the quality criteria for the process of
accreditation for undergraduate and
graduate degree.
It is expected that institutions desirous of
and deserving accreditation will not only
meet but substantially exceed these
standards. This will ensure the current
competence of the institutions to provide
adequate level of teaching/ learning processes and
research as well as a capability to retain this
competence in the future.
Dr. Zafar Iqbal Jadoon, Dean, Management Sciences
Department, UCP, Lahore was Chairman of the
committee. Other members were Dr. Ghulam Shabbir
Khan Niazi, Assistant Professor, Quaid-e-Azam
University, Dr. Jan Muhammad, Dean, Department of
Management Sciences, University of Balochistan,
Quetta, Mr. Imran Wazir, Director QEC, IMSciences,
Peshawar and Mr. Shakoor Ahmed, Regional Chief
SMEDA was the representative from local industry.
Mr. Ahtesham Ali Raja, Programme Manager NBEAC
was also present during the visit.
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News & Views
35 HEC Scholars Leave for
Masters and PhD Studies in Germany
Dr. Cyrill Nunn, Ambassador
of the Federal Republic of
Germany, presided over the
ceremony to bid farewell to
35 scholars of the HEC
programme "Faculty
Development for
UESTPs/UETs".
After completing an intensive
course in German language,
the scholars will join Masters
degree courses in science and
engineering at German
universities followed by PhD
programmes.
The reception was joined by
Mr. Wasim Hashmi Syed, Incharge of HRD Division at
HEC, Ms. Ursula Saarbeck,
Director of the DAAD office in
Islamabad, Dr. Thomas Ditt,
Head of Press and Culture
section at German Embassy,
Dr. Manuel Negwer, Director
of the Goethe-Institute
Karachi, former HEC scholar
Dr. Salman Saeed and Ms.
Nadia Riaz, Director of the
Annemarie Schimmel House.
The Ambassador, in his
address, encouraged the
outgoing scholars to learn
German language in order to
take full advantage of their
scholarship.
He pointed out that
increasing number of foreign
students at German
The scholarships are fully funded by the HEC,
whereas German universities provide teaching
facilities and human resources free of charge. DAAD,
in addition, finances intensive courses in German
language for all scholars of these programmes.
universities do not only
benefit the homelands of
those students but that they
also bring German higher
education and society in
closer contact with all parts of
the world.
Mr. Wasim Hashmi Syed
emphasized the work of the
German Academic Exchange
Service (DAAD) which has
selected and administered
the HEC funded Pakistani
students in Germany for
nearly 10 years.
The scholarships are fully
funded by the HEC, whereas
German universities provide
teaching facilities and human
resources free of charge.
5
DAAD, in addition, finances
intensive courses in German
language for all scholars of
these programmes.
Some 250 HEC scholars have
already returned from
German universities and
found attractive positions at
Pakistani higher education
institutions.
A number of these alumni
started joint research projects
with their German host
partners. A total of 17 joint
German-Pakistani projects
are currently funded under
the DAAD scheme "German
Pakistani Research
Collaborations".
News & Views
5 Universities Win Erasmus Mundus Funding
Under facilitation of the Higher Education
Commission, five Pakistani universities were
selected for award of research grant under
Erasmus Mundus STRoNG TiES (Strengthening
Training and Research through Networking and
Globalization of Teaching in Engineering
Studies), a project under the Erasmus Mundus
Programme supported and funded by the
European Union.
Engineering, Computer Engineering, Energy
and Power Systems, Informatics and
Telecommunication Engineering.
Under Erasmus Mundus STRoNG TiES
Programme, 43 researchers submitted their
individual research proposals from Pakistani
universities in November 2012 and won the
award.
Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairperson HEC, was
invited by the European Union Science Forum
last year to deliver a keynote address at the EU
Parliament and he had subsequent meetings
with EU officials to increase Pakistan's share in
both research grants and scholarships, the
outcome of which was positive and is evident
from the current awards.
The universities selected for the award include
Mehran University of Engineering and
Technology, Jamshoro, National University of
Sciences and Technology, Islamabad,
Muhammad Ali Jinnah University, Islamabad,
University of the Punjab, Lahore and Lahore
University of Management Sciences.
The main disciplines covered under the
programme include Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics with special
emphasis on Electrical and Electronics
Engineering, Information and Communication
Te c h n o l o g y, P h o t o n i c s , B i o m e d i c a l
The Research and Development Division of HEC
played an important role by sharing this
information with Pakistani universities, and
encouraged and guided them to apply for EU
research grant.
French Embassy's Needs-based Scholarships Programme
Pakistani Students, HEC Officials Visit France
The Government of France through its Embassy
in Pakistan is financing 90 Pakistani students in
their undergraduate and graduate studies from
six universities of Pakistan under its “Needs
based Scholarship Programme”.
France from May 24-29, 2013 along with HEC
officials Mr. Murad Shoaib Khan and Ms. Hajra
Suhail on an invitation from the French
Government. The tour was arranged to give an
exposure to students of the programme.
The universities include Quaid-e-Azam
University, Islamabad, COMSATS Institute of
Technology, Islamabad, Government College
University, Lahore, Institute of Management
Sciences, Peshawar, Institute of Business and
Management, Karachi, and Sardar Bahadur
Khan Women University, Quetta. A group of
students representing each participating
university of the programme visited Paris,
The delegation met different officials of French
Government, including Mr. Jean-Baptiste
MATTEI, Additional Secretary for Globalization,
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News & Views
Development and Partnerships, Mr. Philippe
LALLIOT, Spokesperson, Director General for
Press and Communication, Mr. Michael
BOUCAULT, Director d'Asie et d'Oceanie and
Mrs. Elisabeth LAURIN, Director General for Asia
and Oceania Affairs. Dr. Frederic Bessat,
Counselor of Cooperation, Development and
Culture, Embassy of France in Pakistan
accompanied the delegation.
about the measures being taken to elaborate
education ties between the two countries. The
delegation also met representatives of the
Pakistani students who are pursuing PhDs in the
top French universities on HEC scholarships.
Keeping the success of the first phase in view,
the French Embassy has informed that its
cooperation with HEC will be extended and
about 150 to 200 scholarships will be financed
for students taking admission in fall 2013. More
universities and disciplines are added in the
second phase of the programme.
A dinner was hosted by Mr. Ghalib Iqbal,
Ambassador of Pakistani to France in a Pakistani
restaurant wherein he informed the delegation
AIT Cascading Programme at SBBU, Chitral Campus
A three-day AIT Cascading Workshop on
“Ensuring Training Effectiveness” was organized
at Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University, Sub
campus Chitral in collaboration with the
Learning Innovation Division, HEC by Dr.
Muhammad Kamal Khan, Assistant Professor
(AIT Alumni), Shaheed BB University to replicate
the modules studied during the Advanced
Master Training course at Asian Institute of
Technology, Bangkok.
Mr. Noorul Amin, Assistant Commissioner,
Chitral was the chief guest in the opening
ceremony. The workshop was especially
designed to train new faculty members.
Majority of the participants are planning to take
up MS/PhD research work at different
universities. The course methodology included
lectures, group discussions, analyses of written
material, film screening, debates, pair-work and
role plays. The resource persons at the
workshop were AIT alumni.
The focus of the programme was to build
capacities of faculty members of the university
as well as affiliated colleges in the area of
Chitral. A total of 30 faculty members were
trained in the workshop. The course consisted
of 12 training sessions.
Dr. Inayataullah Faizi, a renowned scholar of
Chitrali culture and languages and a former
professor of Peshawar University was the chief
guest at the closing ceremony.
Faculty Professional Development Workshop at DUET
A six-day workshop was
recently held at Dawood
University of Engineering and
Te c h n o l o g y ( D U E T ) f o r
professional grooming of
faculty members of DUET and
some other institutions.
Three modules of FPD were
covered in 24 sessions
following the activity based
a n d i n t e r a c t i v e
communication strategies. As
many as 26 faculty members
attended the workshop.
of the workshop included
"Teaching as a Profession",
"Curriculum Development:
Assessment and Evaluation",
and "Communication Skills".
The workshop equipped the
teachers with androgogical
and research skills. Modules
Engr. Kashif Saleem, Lecturer
i n Te l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n
Engineering at DUET in
7
News & Views
collaboration with Learning
Innovation Division, HEC
organized the workshop. He
is an alumnus of HEC's Master
Trainers-Faculty Professional
Development Programme
a n d A d v a n c e d Fa c u l t y
Professional Development
Programme at AIT Bangkok.
Prof. Engr. Rashid Baig, Dean,
Faculty of Engineering,
inaugurated the workshop
while Shahab Afroz, Director,
Quality Enhancement Cell,
DUET was the chief guest in
the closing ceremony.
Development of Governance & Strategic Planning Framework for HEIs
HEC Organizes Leicester Follow-up Workshop
HEC started the Modern
University Governance
Programme for the
Continuous Professional
Development and Capacity
Building of VCs/Institutional
Heads and Senior
Management of HEIs across
Pakistan in 2007 to equip
them with the latest
governance tools and to
bridge the gap between
management and academia.
In this regard, HEC organized
two orientation workshops
for newly inducted
Institutional Heads of the
HEIs of Pakistan under
Modern University
Governance Programme
since 2011. So far, 39 newly
inducted Institutional Heads
have benefited from this
programme.
The 10 participants of the
follow-up workshop are
newly inducted Heads of
higher education institutions
of Pakistan who earlier got
Leadership Training at UK in
March 2013 with the
collaboration of Higher
Education Commission and
British Council, Pakistan. After
attending the foreign training
t h e y we re re q u i re d to
brainstorm on strategic
planning of their respective
university and future plan of
action.
Development of Governance
and Strategic Planning
Framework for HEIs of
Pakistan recently held at HEC
Islamabad. He stressed that
the universities must develop
effective strategic plans if
they want to come at par with
world renowned universities.
The workshop also provided
them an opportunity to
discuss strategic and action
plans with three Senior Vice
Chancellors of Pakistani
universities, two senior
resource persons from UK
through video conference.
D r. M u k h t a r A h m e d ,
Executive Director HEC
delivered a lecture on the
importance of preparing a
strategic plan, vision and
mission of universities as well.
D r. J a v a i d R . L a g h a r i ,
Chairperson HEC was the
chief guest in the inaugural
and concluding ceremonies
of the two-day Leicester
Follow up Workshop for
8
Ms. Noor Amna Malik ,
Director General, Learning
Innovation HEC introduced
the participants with the
initiatives and objectives of
t h e M o d e r n U n i ve r s i t y
Governance Programme of
HEC.
News & Views
Commercialization of Research
An Innovative Approach to Recycle Egg
Laying Breeder Stock
The Higher Education
Commission (HEC)
sponsored project entitled
“An Innovative Approach to
Recycle Egg Laying Breeder
Stock and their Performance
to the Reviewers in the
Subsequent Production
Cycle” has been successfully
completed.
The Principal Investigator of
the project is Dr. Muhammad
Yousaf from Department of
Poultry Science, University of
Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF),
who accomplished the
project in collaboration with
Kamalia Chicks and Kamalia
Poultry Breeding Farms, and
University Industry
Te c h n o l o g y S u p p o r t
Programme (UITSP).
Poultry industry is one of the
major industries of Pakistan
having an investment of over
Rs. 400 billion while 1.5
million people are employed
in this industry.
The research project funded
by HEC was conducted at
Kamalia Chicks and Kamalia
Poultr y Breeding Farms,
Kamalia.
2400 day old Super Nick layer
parent stock chicks were
received in August 2009.
Complete data of production
performance of birds was
recorded during first
production cycle.
At start of induced molting on
st
1 August, 2010, 1800
breeder hens were randomly
divided into 12 replicates of
150 birds each.
The parent stock was
subjected to induced molting
by different treatments
including Non feed
withdrawal methods
(Treatment A with Aluminium
level-I, Treatment B with
Aluminium level-II), feed
withdrawal method
(Treatment C, feed withdrawn
for 14 days) and control
group (Treatment D).
Feed consumption was less in
molted birds as compared to
hens of control group. Drastic
weight reduction was
observed during induced
molting period.
Maximum weight reduction
was in feed withdrawal hens
followed by non-feed
withdrawal molting methods
at 52nd week of age. There was
a marked decrease in weight
and/or length of respective
9
organs of breeder hens
during molting. Egg
production during second
production cycle started at
rd
63 week of age and reached
th
peak production at 67 week
of age.
Maximum egg production
was non feed withdrawal
method followed by feed
withdrawal method and
minimum egg production
was recorded in control
group. More egg weight was
recorded in molted hens and
control group which was
higher than first production
cycle.
Maximum numbers of chicks
were produced by non-feed
withdrawal molting method
than feed withdrawal
method.
Maximum mortality rate was
recorded in feed withdrawal
molting method while
minimum mor tality was
obser ved in non-feed
withdrawal method. Cost per
chick was found to be Rs. 31
during first production cycle
as compared to Rs. 22 during
second production cycle.
Minimum cost/chick was
obser ved in non-feed
News & Views
withdrawal methods than
feed withdrawal method.
Layer breeder hens in second
production cycle earned
more profit as compared to
first production cycle.
It is worth-mentioning that
non feed withdrawal method
(aluminum supplementation)
proved better than most
widely used feed withdrawal
molting technique. This
technique will tremendously
enhance poultry farmer's
profit globally by reducing
costs, lowering stress, less
mortality, better immunity
and animal friendly.
University Industry
Te c h n o l o g y S u p p o r t
Programme is designed to
develop a strong link
between university
industries. Through this
programme, researchers are
given grant for collaborative
research with industry.
The purpose is to foster high
level of tangible cooperation
between academia and
industry for capitalizing on
e m e rg i n g i n t e r n a t i o n a l
demands for products.
BUITEMS Fosters Relations with Potential Donors,
Builds Strong Alumni Relations
University Advancement and
Financial Assistance
Directorate was established
in Balochistan University of
Information Technology,
Engineering and
Management Sciences
(BUITEMS) by the end of 2009
with the objective to foster
mutually beneficial
relationships with alumni,
trusts/foundations, corporate
sector, international partners
for fundraising and to deal
student financial assistance,
student and alumni
counseling.
The team guided the
University to build donor
database of the region,
develop proposals to secure
various projects from
international NGOs and
engage alumni in various
activities on campus, build
community councils etc.
Under the guidance,
facilitation and technical
training of University
Advancement Office under
HEC-USAID, the Directorate
at BUITEMS is encouraged to
foster relations with the
potential donors of their
region and build strong
relations with the alumni.
Under the guidance and
motivation of UAO office at
HEC, University advancement
office at BUITEMS conducted
Alumni survey for future
commitments, donations and
contributions and developed
a comprehensive database of
BUITEMS Alumni. It will
engage BUITEMS alumni
The UAO at HEC provided
complete guidelines and
strategic plan to BUITEMS. It
also made few visits to the
University for the follow up of
the activities of the
Directorate.
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through Newsletters and
Annual Repor ts shared
through e-mails on regular
basis.
Further, a Facebook group
“BUITEMS Alumni
Association” has also been
formed where more than
1000 BUITEMS alumni share
their views and network.
BUITEMS has so far produced
over 3436 graduates in
different disciplines and it
conducted its first Alumni
Homecoming Event in April
2011 which was attended by
over 400 alumni.
Fostering linkages with the
non-government donors,
BUITEMS has signed a
Memorandum of Agreement
(MoA) with Society for
Empowering Human
Resource (SEHER), a local
NGO in Quetta. Under this
agreement, 25 Work Study
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positions are financed with
the provision of Rs. 3 million
in four years to support 25
students of BUITEMS for
studies in Bachelors' Degree
Programmes.
nature of work performed.
E a c h ye a r a ro u n d 3 5 0
students are inducted under
Work-Study Programme and
attached in different
departments of the university.
BUITEMS is the first university
in Pakistan to introduce
Work-Study Programme, a
financial aid mechanism that
allows students to work while
they are attending university.
Similarly, BUITEMS has also
signed a Memorandum of
Agreement (MoA) with OWN
a Student, a KPK NGO.
This MoA enables BUITEMS
to provide full fee-waiver to
the students from KPK from
weak financial background.
Under this agreement, 20
As the advancement office at
HEC has provided capacity
building trainings and
facilitation to encourage
universities to start
commercial activities using
their products and service,
BUITEMS has established an
Executive Education Center
(BEEC), a first kind of platform
in Balochistan to launch
trainings for the human
resource of other
organizations in the region in
collaboration with PIM
( Pa k i s t a n I n s t i t u te of
Management).
T h i s p ro g r a m m e h e l p s
students meet their expenses
during the academic year. In
addition, students
are being provided
F u r t h e r, C a r e e r
BUITEMS generated Rs 286.323
the opportunity
Ser vices Centre
Million since 2009 to March 2013 for u n d e r U A O
w o r k i n a n
environment best
Directorate is also
the scholarships and infrastructure
suited to their skills,
providing services to
development from private, some
preference, and
meet the needs of
career goals. Some
BUITEMS students to
provincial public organizations and
of the positions in
f o s t e r
a n
commercial activities
which students work
environment that
u n d e r t h i s
provides guidance
programme are: Assistants
and resources to the students
students are selected with the
for Office, Teacher, Computer,
for the achievement of their
provision of Rs.460,000 to
Research Assistant,
career goals.
support 20 students of
P u b l i c a t i o n , L i b r a r y,
BUITEMS for studies in
La b o ra to r y, C o m m u n i t y
Career Ser vices Centre
Bachelors' Degree
Service Provider, etc.
sensitizes job seeking skills
Programmes.
among students and
The students get up to 100
organizes seminars and
The Directorate has
per cent fee waiver based on
workshops.
established various linkages
the number of hours they
nationally and internationally.
have worked during the
It also seeks internships in
Some of the linkages include
semester.
different organizations and
AusAID, Winrock
offer
to students and alumni
International, University of
In addition, students get an
to organize job fairs, and
Southern Queensland, US
experience certificate at the
work for University and
Department of Commerce,
end of academic degree
Industry linkages for jobs and
SUPARCO, NRTC, IBA Karachi,
indicating the duration and
internships.
SMEDA, SSGC, PPL, PIM.
11
News & Views
HEC Post-Doctorate
Scholar Completes
High-tech Research
Project at Massey
University
Dr. Riaz Ahmad has returned to Arid Agriculture
University, Rawalpindi after successful
completion of his post-doctoral studies at
Massey University, New Zealand funded by the
Higher Education Commission under the PostDoctoral Research Fellowship Scheme.
Dr. Riaz Ahmad completed his studies at the
Institute of Agriculture and Environment,
Massey University, New Zealand. He carried out
research on the fingerprinting of organic
matter and biochars using state-of-the-art
13
Pyrolysis GC/MS and C NMR technologies in
collaboration with Prof. Marta Camps, CoDirector, New Zealand Biochar Research Centre.
He carried out research on the fingerprinting of
organic matter and biochars using state-of-the13
art Pyrolysis GC/MS and C NMR technologies
in collaboration with Prof. Marta Camps, CoDirector, New Zealand Biochar Research Centre
at the Institute of Agriculture and Environment,
Massey University.
improver and for greenhouse gas mitigation.
However, with the serious potential impacts of
anthropogenic climate change and important
role of biochar as a mitigation strategy, the
uncertainties need to be resolved urgently.
Therefore, Dr. Ahmed plans to initiate research
in this special area.
Dr. Ahmed presented his research at the Joint
Australian and New Zealand Soil Science
Conference held in Hobart, Australia in
December 2012. He plans to submit five
research papers arising from the research he
carried out at Massey. Earlier he had completed
his doctorate from the University of Adelaide,
Australia and was awarded the most
meritorious “Herold Woolhouse Award for the
Best PhD”in 2000.
During his nine-month stay at Massey, Dr.
Ahmad developed linkages with the New
Zealand Biochar Research Centre, Institute of
Agriculture and Environment, Massey
University, University of Santiago de
Compostela, Spain, AgReserach New Zealand
and CSIRO Australia.
“It was a wonderful opportunity to work at
Massey. I enjoyed my time in a friendly and
multi-cultural environment with full access to
high-tech equipment such as Pyrolysis GC/MS,
13
C NMR, TGA, and HPLC, new vistas of
knowledge and latest innovations in the field of
my interest,” says Dr. Ahmed.
“I thank HEC for awarding me the fellowship to
complete a novel research project. Postdoctoral fellowship programme by HEC is very
helpful in promoting research culture in
Pakistani universities/HEIs as the fellows come
back with rich research experience and fresh
knowledge in their areas of specialties”, says Dr.
Ahmad.
Given the current state of knowledge, biochar
appears to have potential both as a soil
12
News & Views
Training Course for English
Faculty of Colleges of Faisalabad
The English Language Teaching Reforms (ELTR)
project of HEC, under its Phase-II, organized a
week-long workshop on “Research
Methodology” at Government Postgraduate
College Samanabad, Faisalabad. Dr. Riaz
Qureshi, former Adviser HEC, was the chief
guest in the certificate distribution ceremony.
Dr. Ijaz Farooq Akram, Principal of the College
and Director Colleges, Faisalabad Division was
the guest of honour.
Dr. Muhammad Asif, Lecturer in English,
Government Postgraduate College Samanabad
Faisalabad focused on research paradigms,
action research and qualitative research. Dr.
Ahsan Bashir, Assistant Professor at CIIT Lahore
d i s c u s s e d q u a n t i t a t i ve re s e a rc h a n d
quantitative data analysis in detail. He also
imparted training in the use of SPSS and
Endnotes. Dr Farhat Abbas, Director Research,
GCUF briefed the participants on ethics in
research and plagiarism.
The course was designed particularly keeping in
view the modern trends in the area of research.
As many as 32 faculty members of different
colleges of Faisalabad and vicinity attended the
course and learnt the paradigms of research.
This course aimed to disseminate the latest
trends and strategies in research, and mainly
focused on the modern techniques of quality
research in the field of English Language and
Literature.
Dr. Riaz Qureshi highlighted the importance of
promoting research among college teachers
and stressed that the colleges should take
initiative to start faculty development
programmes for their teaching faculty. He
further said that the standard of education at
universities cannot be improved without
improving the quality of education at colleges.
Dr. Muhammad Shahbaz Arif, Dean, Faculty of
Management and Administrative Sciences,
GCUF inaugurated the academic sessions of the
workshop. He covered various dimensions of
research including definition and purpose of
research, conducting research, validity and
reliability in research, and synopsis writing.
IST Achieves ISO 9001:2008 Certification
Institute of Space Technology (IST) has been
awarded ISO 9001:2008 certification in
recognition of commitment to development
and implementation of Quality Management
System. The certification has been awarded by
Bureau Veritas Certification for a period of one
year. This certification is a result achieved by
dedicated commitment of top management,
efforts of IST employees, particularly the
endeavour of the faculty, Departmental Quality
Coordinators and the Quality Enhancement
Cell.
IST aims to continually improve the
effectiveness of Quality Management System
for provision of high quality education.
13
News & Views
NCRC Finalizes Architecture, Biotechnology Curricula
The National Curriculum
Revision Committee for the
subject of Architecture
finalized the curriculum for BS
5-year Programme during its
meeting recently held at HEC
Regional Centre, Lahore.
The objective of the meeting
was to incorporate
suggestions to modify the
existing curriculum in
response to global wave of
change in the field of
Architecture.
Mr. Nazeer Hussain, Director,
HEC Regional Centre briefed
t h e pa r t i c i pa n t s a b o u t
objectives of the meeting. Dr.
Anis Ahmed Siddique,
Professor of Architecture,
College of Arts and Design,
University of the Punjab
convened the technical
sessions for three days.
Dr. Khalid Waseem Bajwa
from the Department of
Architecture and Design,
C O M S AT S I n s t i t u t e o f
Information Technology
(CIIT), Lahore acted as
Secretary NCRC.
The Committee considered
inputs given by members and
incorporated their
suggestions in the final
curriculum. The Committee
unanimously approved the
final draft curriculum of
Architecture for BS
programme.
Members of NCRC in Architecture
Members of NCRC in Biotechnology
Similarly, the final meeting of
the National Curriculum
Revision Committee (NCRC)
in the subject of
Biotechnology was recently
held at HEC Regional Centre,
Peshawar to finalize draft
curriculum of Biotechnology
at BS level and to make
recommendations for
promotion and development
of the discipline.
The meeting was inaugurated
by Mr. Fida Hussain, Director
General (Academics) through
video conferencing from HEC
Islamabad.
He briefed the participants
about objectives of the
meeting with a particular
14
36
focus on development of
curriculum of Biotechnology
at BS and MS/MPhil levels. Mr.
Zaheer Ahmed Awan,
Director HEC Regional Centre
was also present on the
occasion.
Dr. Zabta Khan Shinwari,
Chairman, Department of
Biotechnology, Quaid-iAzam University, Islamabad
was convener of the meeting.
The Committee considered
inputs given by the members
and incorporated different
suggestions. After three-day
deliberations, the Committee
unanimously approved the
final draft curriculum of
Biotechnology at BS level.
News & Views
KMU Workshop on Advanced Techniques in Data Analysis
Khyber Medical University
(KMU) organized workshop in
collaboration with the
Learning Innovation Division,
Higher Education
Commission (HEC) for Data
Analysts of public sector
universities.
The modules designed for the
workshop were based on
Advance software Monkey
software used for online
evaluation and command on
SPSS. Resource person for the
workshop was Dr. Tahir
Masood, Assistant Professor,
University of America, UAE.
Participants from a number of
public sector universities of
the country including KMU
attended the workshop.
Dr. Muhammad Hafizullah,
Vice Chancellor, KMU was the
chief guest in the inaugural
session. He encouraged the
participants to avail this
opportunity and learn
techniques applied
worldwide for data analysis.
He strongly emphasized
upon the vital role of Quality
Enhancement Cells in the
universities.
Dr. Khalid Khan, Additional
Secretary, Department of
Higher Education, KPK was
the chief guest in the closing
ceremony. Hazrat Bilal,
Director, Quality Assurance,
Higher Education
Commission (HEC) was the
guest of honour.
Research in Social Sciences
NUML, Suleman Sah University Sign MoU
A Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) was
signed by the National
University of Modern
Languages (NUML),
Islamabad, and Suleyman Sah
University, Turkey for close
academic collaboration in the
faculties of Humanities and
Social Sciences, Faculty of
Administrative and
Management Sciences as well
as research. The MoU was
signed by Brig. Azam Jamal,
Director General, NUML and
Dr. Adnan Aslan, Dean,
Faculty of Humanities and
Social Sciences, Suleyman
Sah University.
Initially, modalities for
initiation of student and
faculty exchange
programmes and spilt degree
p ro g r a m m e s w o u l d b e
discussed.
The ceremony was attended
by Brig. (R) Saeed Akhtar
Malik, Registrar, Col (R) Syed
15
Jawaid, Director Academics,
Mr. Harun Koken, Chairman,
Rumi Foundation and Dr.
Zakeriya Nas, Head of Turkish
Department at NUML.
News & Views
NUST Seminar on Pak-US Higher Education
Initiative on Civic Engagement
The final seminar on Pak-US
Higher Education Initiative on
Civic Engagement, sponsored
by Innovations in Civic
Participation and the US State
Department, was recently
held at the National
University of Sciences and
Te c h n o l o g y ( N U S T ) ,
Islamabad.
Mr. Ahsan Iqbal, Federal
Minister for Planning and
Development presided over
the inaugural session
culminating on the launch of
Pakistan Chapter of The
Ta l l o i re s N e t w o r k . T h e
Network promotes a culture
of civic engagement and
social responsibility at
institutions of higher
learning.
The Minister lauded the
initiative in which five
Pakistani univer sities,
including NUST, Quaid-iAzam University, University of
Ve t e r i n a r y a n d A n i m a l
Sciences, Dow University of
Health Sciences and Fatima
Jinnah Women University
were twinned with five US
universities, including George
Wa s h i n g t o n U n i v e r s i t y,
Tulane University, University
of Nebraska-Omaha,
University of Minnesota, and
University of North CarolinaChapel Hill. The purpose of
this collaboration is to share
knowledge and experience
regarding community
service, civic engagement
and service learning.
Mr. Ahsan Iqbal reiterated
that the present government
was committed to accord top
priority to education and
youth empowerment.
Mr. Robert Hollister, ED
Talloires Network and Susan
Stroud, ICP Founding
Director, dilated upon the
goals of respective
programmes and
commended NUST role as the
lead university from Pakistan.
Mr. Zahid Hamid, Federal
16
Minister for Science and
Technology, was the chief
guest in the final session of
the seminar. He commended
the noble purpose of the
initiative and appreciated role
of sponsors, 10 twinned
universities and that of NUST
for spearheading the
programme on behalf of
Pakistani universities.
Richard G. Olson, US
Ambassador was the guest of
honour at the final session.
He assured complete support
for the initiative and admired
role of all partner universities
in making the collaborative
programme a success.
Earlier, in his welcome
address, Engr. Muhammad
A s g h a r, R e c t o r N U S T,
highlighted prominent
features of the initiative and
underscored NUST vision,
strategy and implementation
plan to promote a culture of
social responsibility and civic
engagement.
News & Views
Conference held on “From Pollution to Remediation”
The Department of Environmental Sciences,
University of Peshawar recently organized an
International Conference on “From Pollution to
Remediation” at Bara Gali summer campus of
the University.
Environmental Sciences, University of Haripur,
Mr. Jehangir Shah, Senior Scientific Officer,
PCSIR Labs, Peshawar, Dr. Muhammad Arif,
Department of Agronomy, University of
Peshawar and others.
The chief guest was Dr. Qasim Jan, Professor
Emeritus, University of Peshawar. Speakers of
the conference included Dr. Atta ur Rehman,
Associate Professor, Institute of Geography,
Urban and Regional Planning, University of
Peshawar, Mr. Salman Khan, Department of
Meanwhile, World Environment Day was also
celebrated by the Depar tment of
Environmental Sciences. Dr. Farhana, Vice
Chancellor, Frontier Women University,
Peshawar was the chief guest on the occasion.
Dr. Ghazi Presents Paper in KSA
Dr. Inam ul Haq Ghazi, In-Charge, Department
of Translation and Interpretation, International
Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI) presented a
paper in the Forum of universities and
institutions related to the service of Arabic
language in the Gulf Cooperation Council for
the Arab States of Gulf recently held in Riyadh.
Dean, Institute of Arabic
Te a c h i n g t o N o n - n a t i v e
Speakers, King Saud University
and discussed possibilities of
cooperation between KSU and
IIUI. He visited Imam University
too and met Dr. Muhammad Al-Ahaydib, Dean,
Faculty of Languages and Translation, and Dr.
Salih Al-Shuwairikh, Dean, Institute of Arabic
Language and exchanged proposals for mutual
projects under the already signed MoU
between both the universities.
The topic of his paper was “Objectives of
Learning Arabic; a Case Study of Pakistani
Professionals.” He took part in deliberations of
this two-day Forum and shared contribution of
IIUI in teaching Arabic language. He also met
Job Fair at City University, Peshawar
A job fair was recently
organized at the City
University of Science and
Information Technology,
Peshawar.
Dr. Yousaf Sarwar, President,
KPK Chamber of Commerce
and Industry was the chief
guest. Over 20 leading
companies including HBL,
Meezan Bank, Faysal Bank,
Zong Network, AGE Cables,
JS Software, Rozee.pk, State
Life Insurance, Peshawar
Model Schools and Colleges,
17
etc took part in the event to
guide students about career
opportunities and
recruitment process.
News & Views
The purpose of organizing
the fair was that the
U n i v e r s i t y 's f i n a l y e a r
students and graduates could
avail the chances to get
internship/job opportunities
in the companies/industries
present in the fair. The
par ticipating companies
collected resumes from
students for internships and
jobs.
4th Convocation of Dow University of Health Sciences
In his address, the Vice Chancellor recounted
the progress of the University since its inception
and highlighted various developments.
Over 1100 graduates belonging to different
disciplines received their degrees and shields at
the fourth convocation of Dow University of
Health Sciences recently held at Karachi.
Degrees were conferred on graduates of MBBS,
BDS, MPhil, MBA, Nursing, Medical Technology
and other postgraduates of various disciplines.
He said that mission of DUHS is focused on
three domains that include academic
excellence, human resource development and
community healthcare.
Prof. Masood Hameed Khan, Vice Chancellor,
DUHS presided over the ceremony. Prof. Umer
Farooq, Pro Vice Chancellor, DUHS, Prof. Junaid
Ashraf, Principal, Dow Medical College and a
large number of academic council members,
professors, chairmen, HoDs, lecturers, parents
and students attended the convocation.
Dr. Khan advised the graduates to keep high
standards of medical profession in their house
job and future medical practice. He urged the
student not to involve in malpractices and bring
pride and diginity in their profession.
Int'l Conference on Linguistics at AJK University
An international conference on Linguistics was
recently held at the University of Azad Jammu
and Kashmir, Muzaffarabad. National and
international linguists as well as MPhil and PhD
scholars from different universities attended
the two-day conference and presented their
research papers.
stressed upon promoting (corpus) linguistics in
the country. She said that work should be done
to promote linguistics in the country so that
linguistic diversity of the country can be
preserved and ethno linguistic problems can be
reduced.
Foreign linguists included Dr. Nicholas Ostler,
Dr. Omkar Koul, Dr. Paul Kiparskyand and Dr.
Musawir Ahmed. Dr. Tariq Rahman from
Beaconhouse University, Dr. Wasima Shahzad
from Air University and Dr. Safeer Awan from
International Islamic University were among
academia from Pakistan. Dr. Raja Nasim from
AJK University was the chief organizer of the
conference. Dr. Wasima's research was on the
emerging discipline of corpus linguistics. She
A number of sociolinguistic studies were
presented in the conference. During the
conference, the decision to establish Pakistan
Association for Linguistics was also taken.
18
News & Views
FUMC holds Convocation 2013
The Convocation 2013 for the
Foundation University
Medical College was held
recently.
Lt. Gen. (R) Muhammad
Mustafa Khan, President,
F o u n d a t i o n U n i v e r s i t y,
Islamabad (FUI), was the chief
guest. Maj. Gen. (R) Gul
Muhammad, Rector FUI, was
also present on the occasion.
As many as 107 MBBS
graduates were awarded
degrees by the President FUI.
The chief guest also awarded
six gold medals, five silver
medals, 15 distinction
certificates and 62 merit
certificates.
The award for best
graduating student was
clinched by Zaid Waqar.
In his welcome address, Maj.
Gen. (R) Dr. Nasim-ulMajeed, Principal,
Foundation University
Medical College, presented
the annual college report,
highlighting progress and
academic excellence it has
achieved in the past year.
The President FUI, in his
address, said that today
FUMC stands out as a
prominent institution among
the medical colleges of the
country. He said that several
hundred graduates from
FUMC are in the mainstream
of medical profession not
only within Pakistan but also
in other countries.
He said that the purposebuilt campus of the College
with elaborate teaching
facilities is considered as a
model for contemporary
institutions. He said that
construction of the new block
to house the Dental College is
progressing as per schedule
and is expected that BDS
programme shall be launched
in January 2014.
IST Wins DBFC-8 for 2nd Consecutive Year
Institute of Space Technology
(IST), Islamabad won first
prize in the national Design
Build and Fly Competition
(DBFC-8) recently held at
Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute
(GIKI) of Engineering,
Sciences and Technology.
A total of 17 teams
participated from all over
Pakistan including two teams
of IST.
Tea m I n f i n i t y wo n t h e
competition in Electric
c a t e g o r y a n d Te a m
Leviathans received the best
19
innovative design award.
Earlier, IST won the DBFC-7
competition held at GIKI in
April 2012.
News & Views
French Cultural Centre to be established at UAF
Mr. Fredric Bessat, Counselor
for Cooperation, French
Embassy Islamabad, has said
that a French Cultural Centre
would be established at the
University of Agriculture,
Faisalabad in order to extend
French language classes
facilities as well as organize
cultural activities for students
and civil society of Faisalabad.
He stated this during a recent
meeting with Dr. Iqrar Ahmad
Khan, Vice Chancellor UAF. He
said that the Government of
France has been promoting
bilateral relations with
Pakistan.
He said that the Cultural
Centre at UAF would facilitate
young scholars from various
universities and business
community regarding
cultural and linguistic
opportunities.
Mr. Fredric hoped that a PakFrance Alumni Association
Chapter at Faisalabad would
be functional in the days to
come. He was of the view that
scholars from universities of
Fa i s a l a b a d h a v e g r e a t
potential to grab maximum
opportunities to win
competitive slot of
scholarships for France.
Dr. Iqrar Ahmad Khan, while
briefing the delegation, said
Conference on Extremism and
Terrorism in Pakistan
Speakers at an international
conference underscored the
need for coming up with
some equal powerful
counter-narrative against
extremism and terrorism. The
two-day event on “Extremism
and Terrorism in Pakistan:
Challenges and Sustainable
Solutions” was organized by
20
that 16 faculty members
qualified from France have
been inducted and more
scholars would be included to
strengthen the education and
research portfolio of the
University.
Dr. Khan said that the present
government has announced
attractive incentive package
for higher education sector
particularly a slot of 2000
scholarships for abroad
would pave new ways to bring
educational revolution in the
country.
the University of Sindh (UoS)
in collaboration with HEC and
Hanns Seidel Foundation,
Germany.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr.
N az i r A . M u gh al , V i ce
Chancellor, University of
Sindh said that the word of
fundamentalism was used by
the international community
and discussed implications of
extremism on higher
education.
“Ironically, foremost target of
extremists had been the
Muslim world itself. Minority
News & Views
wanted its philosophy thrust
over majority,” he said.
Mr. Hussain Haroon, former
envoy to the United Nations,
called for identifying the
p ro b l e m c o r re c t l y a n d
putting 'our own house' in
order first.
D r. R o d n e y W. J o n e s ,
President, Policy Architects
International, Washington,
traced history of jihad or
militancy. He said that Islam
was not an issue but the issue
was that there were many
perceptions about Islam,
reflecting sectarianism.
He said that Jews had
resolved their issues with
Christianity as far as threat
perception was concerned.
There was a threat perception
involving Muslims and Islam.
Dr. Daniel Pineu, Researcher
of Portuguese Institute of
International Relations and
Security, stated that Pakistani
academicians were not
coming up with equally
powerful counter-narrative
against terrorism and
extremism.
“Flow of information on
terrorism was unhindered
and Pakistani society was
consuming this knowledge in
the absence of a counternarrative,” he said.
Former ambassador
Shamshad Ahmed, Air
Commodore Jamal Hussain
and Dr. Shabana Fayyaz also
spoke on the occasion.
SALU Seminar on Hyder Bakhsh Jatoi
A one-day seminar on the life
and achievements of Hyder
Bakhsh Jatoi was organized
by the Department of Political
Science, Shah Abdul Latif
University (SALU), Khairpur.
The seminar was presided
over by Dr. Parveen Shah, Vice
Chancellor, SALU. Speaking
on the occasion, she said that
Hyder Bakhsh Jatoi was a
national hero, who rendered
tremendous services for the
cause of peasants.
“He was inspired by the
socialist movements and the
revolutionary movement of
Shah Inayat Shaheed. He
launched his Hari Movement
on the footstep of Shaheed
Shah Inayat and introduced
famous slogan Hari Haqdaar,”
she said.
Mr. Mukhtar Samo, Director,
Knowledge Centre, Larkana
said that Hyder Bakhsh Jatoi
was a visionary leader who
fought against landlords in
favour of downtrodden
people and fought against
the atrocities committed by
feudals. Mr. Abdul Malik
Khoso said that his
contribution is laudable for
awareness of problems of the
peasants. Mr. Imdad Hussain
Chandio said that it is our
duty to give awareness to
21
youth regarding the struggle
rendered by Hyder Bakhsh.
Mr. Rahim Bakhsh Jafferi,
keynote speaker of the
seminar, remarked that with
education and practical
approach Hyder Bakhsh Jaoi
led the peasants. His writings,
speeches and poetry infuse
the enthusiasm among the
youth and peasants against
the one unit and the
atrocities committed by
feudal lords.
News & Views
st
CIIT Wins 1 FPCCI Achievement Award
COMSATS Institute of Information Technology
(CIIT), has won the 1st FPCCI Achievement
Award. The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of
Commerce and Industry, the apex body of trade
and industry of Pakistan, launched the FPCCI
Achievement Award to recognize and honour
the dedicated and enterprising organizations
that have made a sustained and long-lasting
contribution to Pakistan's economy and its
development. CIIT is the only HEI to receive this
award for its outstanding services in education
and training for the year 2012.
FPCCI's recognition of CIIT also manifests the
resolve of corporate community in the
promotion of higher education and developing
strong academia-industry linkages. Award
recipients in other categories included industry
giants such as PARCO, Guard Group, Al-Karam,
NBP, Arif-Habib Securities, EFU Insurance,
Hilton Pharma, Shan Foods and Rafhan.
Mr. Muhammad Raza Ahmad Khan, General
Manager, University Industry Linkages at Office
of Research, Innovation and Commercialization
(ORIC) received this award (gold medal and a
certificate) on CIIT's behalf at a ceremony
recently hosted at Karachi. Renowned scientist
Dr. Abdul Qadeer Khan was the chief guest on
this occasion.
The award is recognition of CIIT's efforts to
create longstanding partnership with industry
and will help CIIT furthering its cause of socioeconomic development of the economy.
th
4 Convocation of
Virtual University held at Rawalpindi
The fourth convocation of Virtual University of
Pakistan was recently held for the graduating
students of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Northern
Punjab. Degrees were conferred upon 1200
graduates who successfully completed their
Bachelors and Masters programmes. Laptop,
Gold medal and merit certificates were also
awarded to the outstanding graduates.
In his welcome address, Mr. Tajdar Alam, Rector
of the University highlighted achievements of
the Virtual University as leaders in education
technology, its leading role in delivering quality
education to the remotest parts of the county
through use of information communication
technologies. He also emphasized on the need
to work selflessly for the progress and
betterment of the country and for making
Pakistani nation, an educated nation.
Dr. Zafar Iqbal Qadir, Secretary, Ministry of
Information Technology was the chief guest. He
appreciated the achievements of the Virtual
University and also congratulated successful
graduates and high achievers.
22
News & Views
GIKI holds 17th Convocation
Engr. Shaukatullah Khan,
Governor Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa, presided over
the 17th convocation of GIK
Institute, Swabi.
He awarded gold medals to
the outstanding students and
conferred degrees on 265 BS,
14 MS and 2 PhD graduates.
Speaking at the occasion, the
Governor said that great
institutions are built by men
of learning, teachers and the
students. Engr Shamsul Mulk,
president of Society for the
Promotion of Engineering
Sciences and Technology in
Pakistan said the GIK Institute
has grabbed a unique place in
the academic circles within a
short span of time.
Mr. Jehangir Bashar, Rector of
the Institute said, “We believe
in the holistic concept of
education and our system
strives to facilitate integrated
and all round development of
NED Symposium on
Industry Academia Collaboration
As an initiative of the HRM
Committee of Pakistan
Petroleum Exploration and
Production Companies
Association (PPEPCA), a
daylong symposium on
Industry-Academia
Collaboration was recently
held at NED University,
Karacchi, which was attended
by over 350 participants
representing industry and
academia.
A strong presence of PPEPCA
representing 23 E&P
companies was reflected by
par ticipation of chief
executives and senior
management of MPCL, PPL,
OGDCL, GHPL, ENI Pakistan,
POPH, KUFPEC and PPEPCA.
The academia was
represented by over 300
delegates including faculty
members and students from
23
human personality −
physical, social intellectual,
and moral.”
Dr. Fazal Ahmad Khalid, ProRector (academic) spoke
about linkages with national
and international universities,
research projects, role of the
academia, linkage between
academia and industry and
co-curricular activities.
Quaid-i-Azam medal for
overall performance was
awarded to Iqra Ijaz and
Ghulam Ishaq Khan medal for
best academic position to
Salman Saeed Khan. Those
who got the faculty based
gold medals were Sarah
Khalid, Wahab Ali,
Muhammad Rehan Abbasi,
Salman Saeed Khan, Bahawal
Haq, Syed Abdul Ahad and
Abdullah Umair Bajwa.
seven departments of five
major Engineering and other
Universities of Sindh
province. Four papers two
from the industry and two
from NED University were
presented, which was
followed by a panel
discussion.
Dr. M. Afzal Haque, Vice
Chancellor, NED University
was the chief guest while Lt.
General (R) Raza Muhammad
Khan, President PPEPCA HRM
Committee and MD/CEO
News & Views
MPCL presided over the panel
discussion. The symposium
recommended to move
forward with short term and a
long term goals, which will be
planned with specific
outputs.
PPEPCA will set precedence in
Pakistan by facilitating
academia in establishing a
strong and
sustainable
technical base in the country
for research and
development.
Petroleum industr y will
facilitate arrangements of
s h o r t te r m o r i e n t a t i o n
programme for the faculty
members with respect to their
operational endeavours and
adaptations of new
technologies.
The exposure to problems
being faced may also be
shared where possible and
academia may be involved
considering the limitations.
Seminar on Global Vision of
Islamic Banking, Its Implications in Pakistan
“There is a growing demand
for Shariah-compliant
financial products worldwide,
not only with the Islamic
banks but also with the
Islamic banking windows in
conventional banks.”
Mr. Ghulam Shabir, Joint
Director of Islamic Banking
Department, State Bank of
Pakistan Karachi, expressed
these views while addressing
participants of a seminar
entitled “Global Vision of
Islamic Banking and Its
Implications in Pakistan”
organized by Isra University,
Hyderabad.
The seminar was organized in
collaboration with the State
Bank of Pakistan, Meezan
Bank Limited, and Burj Bank
Limited.
Prof. Muhammad Iqbal Bhatti,
Dean, Faculty of Commerce,
Economics, and Management
Sciences, inaugurated the
session.
Speaking at this occasion, Mr.
Ghulam Shabir discussed the
prudent regulations of central
bank for Islamic banking in
Pakistan. He said that the
industry was rapidly growing
since 2001 in terms of
deposits, branch networks,
and Musharikah products. He
emphasized that the industry
was still in a transitional
phase, therefore there was a
need of Shariah-compliant
financial innovations and
trained human resource.
Mufti Tanveer ul Hassan,
Shariah Adviser of Meezan
Bank Limited discussed the
Shariah requirements for
Islamic financial transactions.
He also mentioned various
financial products and their
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potential growth in Pakistan.
Mr. Adeel Ahmed Siddiqi,
Manager for Shariahcompliance with Burj Bank
Limited highlighted the
historical trend of Islamic
banking with global initiatives
and developments in Islamic
banking, and the potential
risk in terms of recession and
volatility of safe rate for the
financial products in Islamic
banking industry.
Mr. Javaid Dar, Assistant
Professor of Faculty of
Commerce, Economics, and
Management Sciences, Isra
University discussed the asset
based financial methodology
of Islamic banks. He discussed
the macro-economic
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objective of Islamic economic
system, with emphasis on
adopting alternative
methodology of IIBOR (InterIslamic Bank Offer Rates).
Representatives of
Hyderabad Chamber of
Commerce and Industries
(HCCI), Small and Medium
Enterprises Development
Authority (SMEDA), Trade
Development Authority of
Pakistan (TDAP) and other
organizations also attended
the session.
Isra University Symposium on New Trends in Dentistry
Isra Dental College, Isra University recently
organized a one-day Symposium on New
Trends in Dentistry at its Hyderabad campus.
The speakers described pain management in
dental surgeries and discussed various
methods that are in practice to mitigate the
operative pain. They also elaborated the
impression techniques for implants in dental
surgery. They gave a comprehensive review of
conservative techniques for staining of teeth
and highlighted the efficacy of flurbiprofen in
dental management
Dr. Kanwal Saeed from Karachi, Prof. Dr. Abdul
Qadir Khero, Principal, Isra Dental College, Prof.
Dr. Rafique Ahmed Memon Dean, Faculty of
Dentistry and Allied Sciences, Dr. Farrukh Aqil,
Dr. Salman Shafique, Dr. Laeeque Zaman from
Karachi, Dr. Feroz Ali Kalhoro from LUMHS, Dr.
Yawar Ali Abidi from Dow University Karachi, Dr.
Nadia Inayat from Hamdard Dental College,
and Dr. Tania from Aga Khan University Karachi
spoke about various aspects of dental practices,
including pain management, implants, 3D
innovation in digital dentistry, management of
tooth discoloration conservative approach,
pediatric dental cases, and management of
anterior open bite cases.
Prof. Dr. Ghulamqadir Kazi, Vice Chancellor, Isra
University lauded presentations of the speakers
and also appreciated the efforts of Isra Dental
College in organizing the seminar. The
symposium was attended by over 300
participants including those from Isra Dental
College and Liaquat University of Medical and
Health Sciences (LUMHS), Jamshoro and
renowned dental practitioners of Hyderabad.
News in Picture
The Government of Pakistan has conferred
Tamgha-e-Imtiaz on Prof. Hafiz Muhammad
Iqbal, former Dean, Faculty of Education,
University of the Punjab in recognition of his
services for the cause of education.
Prof. Iqbal holds MA Science Education from
King's College, University of London and PhD
under split programme between University of
London and University of the Punjab. He was
awarded Fulbright Fellowship to pursue postdoctoral studies from University of Texas at
Austin in the area of Cognitive Psychology.
Previously, he has also been awarded Izaz-eFazeelat by the Government of Pakistan and
Best University Teacher Award by HEC.
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News & Views
BNU Workshop on Peace
The Institute of Psychology at
Beaconhouse National
University, Lahore recently
organized a faculty training
workshop on Peace
Psychology. Dr. Daniel Christi,
Professor Emeritus at Ohio
State University and Fulbright
Specialist on Peace
Psychology conducted the
workshop.
He has been visiting the
Institute of Psychology, BNU,
under the Fulbright
Specialists Programme.
The faculty from BNU's
Institute of Psychology as well
as from various public and
private sector universities
attended the workshop.
In addition to an overview of
Peace psychology and its
available resources, the
participants took part in
developing Peace Psychology
curricula for their respective
universities. The workshop
stirred constructive academic
discussion. Narratives in
Pa k i s t a n i s o c i e t y t h a t
promote structural and
cultural violence were also
discussed.
FJWU Conference on Gender and Disaster Management
The Department of Gender Studies, Fatima
Jinnah Women University (FJWU), Rawalpindi in
collaboration with the Department of Human
Rights and Minority Affairs, Government of the
Punjab and Action Aid recently organized an
International Conference on "Gender and
Disaster Management: Facing Disaster Making
Decision". The basic aim of the conference was
to enhance the understanding related to
vulnerabilities, needs, priorities and capacities
of women and men during natural and
manmade calamities and to ensure that these
differences are recognized and equally
addressed throughout the process of managing
disaster and post disaster situation.
unimaginable progress through good decision
making, both in pre and post disaster situation.
During the conference, a total of 23 papers were
presented under five different themes, and the
sessions were chaired by eminent scholars.
There were two international participants, one
from USA and the other from Australia who
presented their papers at the conference.
Prof. Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed, Executive Director,
HEC was the chief guest in the closing
ceremony. He stressed the importance of
gender equality, specifically in the field of
education and employment. He said that
education is one of the basic tools for
empowering women, adding that access to
quality education will equip women to deal with
unforeseen situations in a better way. He also
acknowledged the significance of women's
involvement in the decision making process,
both in pre and post disaster situations.
In her speech, Dr. Samina Amin Qadir, Vice
Chancellor, FJWU said that students and
teachers can play a key role in disseminating
information on disaster related issues. M. Abbas
Chaudhry, Vice Chancellor, UET Taxila was the
chief guest. He talked about the resources
Pakistan has and how we can make
26
News & Views
MAJU
Conference on
Bioinformatics &
Computational Biology
The Department of Bioinformatic, Mohammad
Ali Jinnah University (MAJU), Islamabad
recently organized a one-day conference on
“Emerging Trends in Bioinformatics and
Computational Biology”. A total of 90
participants from 13 different universities and
research institutions from across the country
attended the conference. The conference
included seven sessions consisting of three
keynote lectures delivered by renowned
s c i e n t i s t s , 2 2 o r a l a n d n i n e p o s te r
presentations.
discussed the importance of Bioinformatics.
First technical session was chaired by Dr. Azra
Khanum, which consisted of three keynote
lectures delivered by Dr. Sajid Rashid, Dr.
Zubeda Chaudhry and Dr. Muhammad Ismail.
Afterwards, there were sessions on Biomedical
Informatics, Agri-Informatics,
Genomics/Proteomics and Computer Aided
Drug Designing.
The presentations evaluation committee
evaluated all the oral and poster presentations
and selected best three from oral and best two
from the poster presentations. The concluding
session was chaired by Dr. Muhammad
Mansoor Ahmed, Executive Vice President,
MAJU, Islamabad. He emphasized that such
events would be a regular feature in future.
Dr. Azra Khanum, Director, Institute of Natural
and Management Sciences was the chief guest
at the inaugural session. Dr. Muhammad Abdul
Qadir, Dean, Faculty of Computing, MAJU
welcomed the participants and briefly
Industrial Open House and Job Fair 2013
An Open House and Job Fair was arranged at
Mohammad Ali Jinnah University, Islamabad.
The event provided the graduating students a
platform to showcase their talent and
knowledge to representatives from various
industries and academia.
It was attended by industrial and business
entrepreneurs as well as employers from public
and private sectors. The event was also
attended by numbers of academia and students
from other universities.
display and representatives from more than 50
organizations witnessed and appreciated the
efforts put in by students. Mr. Aqeel Khursheed,
CTO of Nayatel was invited as the chief guest.
He along with the Executive Vice President of
MAJU visited projects in display area.
Students who displayed their projects were
from the Depar tment of Electronics
Engineering, Computer Science and BioInformatics. There were a total of 54 projects on
27
News & Views
1st Batch Graduates from IUB Rangers Campus
The first batch of students
from the Rangers Campus of
Islamia University of
Bahawalpur has passed out.
The idea of “IUB Rangers
Campus” was conceived by
Dr. Muhammad Mukhtar, Vice
C h a n c e l l o r, I U B , w h o
presented it as a proposal of
mutual co-operation in the
field of education by Punjab
Rangers and IUB.
After mutual agreement, an
MoU of reciprocal coo p e r a t i o n a n d
rapprochement for
educational development
between the two institutions
was signed between IUB and
Desert Rangers, Bahawalpur.
The presence of Vice
Chancellors from different
universities at the graduation
ceremony also made the
event unique.
Speaking at the occasion, Dr.
Muhammad Mukhtar, Vice
Chancellor, IUB said that
partnership between both
the institutions had
succeeded in promoting
higher education through
effective measures.
Brig. Salim Qadir, Sector
Commander, Desert Rangers,
Bahawalpur thanked the Vice
Chancellor for making it a
memorable day for students,
teachers, armed forces and
e d u c a t i o n c o m m u n i t y,
adding that hard work and
discipline of the faculty
member s and students
remained excellent which
would become a source of
inspiration for younger
students to emulate.
UoP Workshop on Zoonotic Diseases
“Seventy percent of diseases in human are
originated from animals and serve as the main
causative agent of serious bacterial and viral
infections. Not only this, 60 percent of the
pathogens cause zoonotic diseases mainly
because they are exported via animals' meat
and unhygienic dairy products and forages.”
epidemics like bird flu. It was highlighted that
almost no diagnostic facilities are available for
detection of zoonotic diseases in the tertiary
care hospitals of the province, let alone DHQs
and RHCs.
This was revealed by speakers during a one-day
workshop on Zoonotic Diseases held at the
Centre of Biotechnology and Microbiology,
University of Peshawar. The workshop was
organized by the University in collaboration
with Relief International and was attended by a
good number of students and faculty staff.
Addressing the workshop, Dr. Ijaz Ali said that
issue based research to overcome zoonotic
diseases is need of time. Dr. Bashir Ahmed,
Director, Centre of Biotechnology and
Microbiology called for sensitizing students so
as to create awareness and conduct research on
the booming issue of zoonotic diseases. He
urged the need for special storage mechanism
to save dairy products from contamination.
The speakers said that most of the epidemic
diseases started out as zoonotic and have been
traced to human interaction with and exposure
to animals. This not only cause loss to human
health but the country also faced serious
economic losses owing to outbreak of
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