‘500,000 laptops to be distributed among students by 2018’

NAWABSHAH: Focal Person of Prime Minister Laptop Scheme and Director General Information Technology Higher Education Commission Anwaar Amjad said on Thursday that under the scheme 100,000 laptops were distributed among students and a consignment of further 200,000 laptops was purchased for distribution during next year.
He said that 500,000 laptops would be distributed among students by 2018. He expressed these views while talking to media at the laptop distribution ceremony at Quaid-e-Awam Engineering University.
He also handed over a laptop to a talented special (disable) student in the presence of Vice Chancellor QUEST Dr Abdul Karim Baloch and Naeem Bhutto Deputy Director Karachi Region.The DG IT said that under the Prime Minister Laptop Ccheme laptops would be distributed among students doing PhD and M. Phil of all the four provinces apart from Gilgit Baltistan and Azad Kashmir and the program is being extended to college level.
He said that distribution of laptops aims at reducing the setting up and maintenance expenses of university libraries.He said that majority of the students were not in a financial position to take admissions in universities and now their fees are paid under Prime Minister scheme, which has multiplied the rate of admissions.
Anwaar Amjad said that universities are being linked in order to conduct video conferences and share research information with researchers, teachers and students. He said that digital libraries would also play important role in accessing to millions of books and journals. He said that with the cooperation of World Bank, laptops would also be given to students of 50 colleges those are affiliated with universities.