Ban on Permanent Appointments in Balochistan; More Than 100 PhD Scholars Have Left the Province: Governor
QUETTA (Daily Qudrat): Governor Balochistan Jaffar Khan Mandokhail has revealed that due to the ban on permanent appointments of professors and PhD scholars, more than 100 scholars have already left the province. He warned that if this trend of qualified people leaving the province continues, the standard of higher education and research in public universities could be affected.
He expressed these views while presiding over the third meeting of the Senate of Balochistan University of Engineering and Technology, Khuzdar.
The Governor of Balochistan said that a comprehensive and effective strategy is needed to retain existing PhD scholars and senior professors in the province and to attract new educationists and researchers to public universities.
He said that immediate and effective steps are indispensable to stop the loss of experienced teachers and to stabilise academic and research capabilities. He said that retaining competent scholars in universities is necessary for improving academic performance and equipping students with modern knowledge and research skills.
Jaffar Khan Mandokhail praised the efforts of Vice Chancellor Professor Maqsood Ahmed and his team; however, he said that much remains to be done to improve the higher education sector in Balochistan.
He also stressed that the establishment of new universities and campuses should be carried out keeping in view local needs and ground realities instead of individual preferences. He stressed the need to review existing campuses so that, under informed policy decisions, it can be determined which campuses should be retained, which merged and which closed.
Pointing out the imbalance in the distribution of teachers, the Governor of Balochistan said that there is a severe shortage of senior teachers in some modern academic disciplines, while in some traditional disciplines there is more staff than required compared to the number of students. He stressed better human resource planning and balanced distribution of teachers.
He said that improving the quality of higher education requires effective policymaking, careful use of available resources and continuous improvement in teaching and research standards.
The meeting was attended by Balochistan High Court’s Justice Najamuddin Mengal, Leader of the Opposition Mir Younus Aziz Zehri, Provincial Minister for Education Raheela Hameed Khan Durrani, Secretary Higher Education Hashim Khan Ghilzai, Pro Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Mushtaq Ahmed Shah, Registrar Engineer Liaquat Lehri and other Senate members.
After considering the members’ proposals and recommendations, several decisions were taken to improve the university’s academic and administrative performance. At the end of the meeting, commemorative shields were also distributed among the Senate members.
