6 Pak universities among top 300 Asian universities, says HEC

LAHORE - The Higher Education Commission (HEC) Executive Director Prof Dr Sohail H. Hayat while addressing a video conferencing seminar on Monday in connection with the 10 years establishment of HEC, said that six Pakistani universities have been ranked among the top 300 Asian universities while two Pakistani universities are standing among the top 300 sciences and technology institutions of the world.
Besides this, 41 more universities had been established across the country in a span of ten years to educate the people with modern and quality education, he observed. Dr Sohail urged the educationists and the researchers to maintain good relations with the industry in order to transform their knowledge into goods and services by solving the problems of the industries with the help of good research work.
Highlighting the contributions of the HEC during the last ten years, he said that they had enabled the spread of higher education to every region of Pakistan with an increase in the number of university campuses in Pakistan from 168 to 258, including the establishment of 41 new universities. While sharing statistics with the participants, Dr. Sohail said that due to the efforts of the HEC, there was an increase in student enrollment at universities from 330,000 to over a million, increase in the enrollment of women in universities from 36 percent to 46 percent, awarding of more than 10,000 local and foreign scholarships through a well-defined and transparent mechanism that did not make any compromise on merit, awarding of 2,000 scholarships for the talented youth of Balochistan and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), and the launch of additional 600 MPhil/PhD scholarships exclusively for the students of Balochistan.
Prof Dr Zakir Hussain said the university was bearing a deficit budget of Rs. 150 million two years ago but because of good financial interventions, the university surplus budget had gone up to Rs. 480 million this year. He pointed out that the university was standing among the top universities of country as it had emerged to number six in the overall rankings, whereas last year the university was at number 19. He lauded the steps taken by the HEC to improve the quality of education for making them at par with international standards by raising the standard of education and uplifting the status of the teaching staff with hefty pays.
He apprised that the university was committed to take any tangible steps for meeting the criteria of 33 agendas set by the HEC. He said that it was a matter of pride for the varsity that it had 200 PhDs and had hired 70 teachers on tenure track system. He also informed the audience about the new campus of the university which was being set up at Jhang road on 200 acres of land. The new building would be built at a distance of a few kilometers from the current campus to meet the demand of increasing students, he added.

Pakistani youth take spouse visa route to success

A Pakistani passport. An increasing number of Pakistani men have married foreign-residents despite being in relationship with women and having wives back home – File photo courtesy Creative Commons

Young, old, fat, short, tall, fair, dark, smart, intelligent, caring – it doesn’t matter for young Pakistani men seeking prospective brides as a shortcut exit overseas. The only criterion is that you must hold a foreign passport and be able to financially support yourself as a young woman because this type of man isn’t in it for the long run.
Simple, innocent and conservative overseas-born or raised Pakistani girls are an easy target for these men. Most Pakistani families living abroad raise their children in a sheltered and protective environment, where they try to maintain their traditional ties with their native country and expect the same respect in return.
Marriage is a sacred union. Majority of overseas Pakistanis and respectable families in Pakistan cherish this system, adhering to the values and upholding the sacred union. However, seeing the latest matrimonial advertisements in the leading Pakistani national newspapers and online websites, marriage has become a business agreement. A culturally arranged marriage has become rather a business deal, where the groom needs to chalk out a business plan, conduct a SWOT analysis and check their return on investment.
It’s not only Pakistani men but also Pakistani women that are being married to foreign-passport-holding Pakistani men regardless of checking their compatibility, education, personality, age and long-term commitment, just to secure a better life for their family back home.
Frustrated by the economic and political instability and limited opportunities within their own country, Pakistani men and women are seeking refuge in other countries through any means. According to a British Higher Education Statistics Agency report, Pakistan accounts for 54 per cent of UK’s (non-EU) international students. In 2009-2012 there were over 9, 815 Pakistani students enrolled in higher education institutes. Furthermore, popular countries such as Canada, North America, several North European countries, including Sweden and Finland are attracting thousands of Pakistani students to their universities. More than 8, 458 Pakistani students studied in Australia in 2009-2010, increase of 11.4 per cent over 2008-2009.
Unless there is financial backing, life is tough for these Pakistani students overseas. Expensive college/university tuition fees, low-wages, odd jobs and unstable living conditions lead them to resentment and bitterness towards their country of stay. Moreover, they become opportunistic individuals that are willing to compromise and deceive others in order for them to gain permanent residency. An easy shortcut solution is to marry a local citizen.
The Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) recently stated that there are a record number of fraudulent weddings and spouse claims being made by visa cheats in order to gain entry in the county and obtain Australian-citizenship.
According to the Herald Sun special DIAC report (August, 2012) more than 1,300 overseas-born partners have been sent packing in the past four years after their relationships with Australian residents and citizens were exposed as lies – 406, or eight a week, in the past year alone. Four in 10 partner visa applications came from foreigners already in the country on student, work or holiday visas in the past year, and they were most often rejected.
In New Zealand, nearly 500 people were turned away by immigration officers in the previous financial year after claiming to be in a long-term and stable relationship with New Zealanders.
Increasing number of statistics of Pakistani men involved in polygamous marriages and unregistered marriages in Pakistan is alarming; this is where Pakistani men have married foreign-residents despite being in relationship with women and having wives back home. They are not only spoiling the lives of innocent women in Pakistan for their self-vested interest abroad but leaving a social stigma for both these women residing abroad and in Pakistan.
According to a BBC report,  Pakistani woman, Dr Zabina Shahain married a well-known man Mr Pervez Choudhry, former Conservative party leader residing in United Kingdom, who did not disclose but was still married. He did not realise that marriage in Pakistan was legally valid in the UK and was given a community order after admitting bigamy.
Similar cases are now emerging among young Pakistani men overseas that are taking part in dual marriages without disclosing information to their prospective spouses. Once these men secure their permanent visas, and achieve their goals they take the exit route. Left behind, are distraught and mentally disturbed women that have no option but to either stay due to family commitments or face social challenges if they leave them behind.
Common signs that Pakistani families need to be cautious of when assessing prospective spouses for their dear ones is to have a thorough background check, assess their emotional involvement towards their spouse to-be, disclosing of personal information and whereabouts and be wary of excessive blandishment.
A time where Pakistan already faces political, economic and social challenges domestically and in the international arena, the country cannot afford individuals to further damage its image.

Bridging gap between borders and generations

Bridging gap between borders and generations

‘Face to Faith’ brings students from Pakistan and India together to talk about treatment of elders

The mention of Pakistan conjured up stark images for students of Brindavan Vidyalaya until an interaction through video conferencing this week shattered the cultivated stereotypes.

Though divided by borders, students from both nations found a common pitch in challenges they faced, including the widening gap between Generation Y and senior citizens.

Organised by international organisation , ‘Face to Faith’ that brings students across cultures and faiths together through technology, the video-conference between four schools, two from Pakistan and two from India , included Brindavan Vidyalaya, Thiruvanaikoil as a participant. The school had invited grandparents to join students in the discussion centred on International Day of Older Persons observed on October 1.

The mediator encouraged students to share anecdotes and axioms from scriptures to express what diverse faiths talk about treatment of elders.

Students from Brindavan Vidyalaya joined their counterparts in Bal Bharathi Public School, Pitampura, New Delhi, in narrating instances from Ramayana, Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, and sayings by Thiruvalluvar and Avvaiyar.

Rama’s exile in obedience to Dasaratha, Shravan Kumar’s devotion to his aged parents who were carried in two baskets slung over his shoulder, Parasurama who beheaded his mother’s head in compliance with his father’s order and used a boon granted by him to restore her to life, were cited.

Students from across the border quoted the Prophet on the value of respecting elders.

Surmounting technological challenge

“New technologies and communication have widened the gap between grandparents and grandchildren” said a grandparent. “While we struggle to keep up with the pace of advancement, we are looked down upon by youngsters as people who know nothing. It makes us feel inferior.”

While grandparents felt that grandchildren no longer listened to their stories, children felt it was because the tales were not relevant and held no interest to them. In the course of the discussion there was a shift in attitudes.

“It is not the stories that matter, but spending time listening to them or finding alternatives like watching television together,” said a student. Another felt it was important to ‘replace sympathy with empathy and put ourselves in their shoes’.

The challenge for this generation is to not permit technology to get in the way of their relationship with the older generation, said the mediator.

“Can you switch off the television earlier? Can you spend less time talking on the phone? Can you get off your computer to spend time with your grandparent?”