CM for making Cadet College Gadap one of Asia’s best

Corps commander says Rs1.5b 100-acre project to be completed by April 

Karachi

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has said that he has a dream to see Cadet College Gadap as one of the best educational institutions of not only Pakistan but also Asia.

“This is why I have made the corps commander Karachi chairman of its board of governors,” he said while presiding over a Board of Governors meeting of Cadet College Gadap at the CM House on Friday.

Those who attended the meeting included Senior Minister for Education Nisar Khuhro, Corps Commander Karachi Lt-General Naveed Mukhtar Chief Secretary Siddique Memon, GOC Major General Shahzad Naeem Education Secretary Fazal Pechuho, Finance Secretary Sohail Rajput, Commander Log Brigadier Mazhar Iqbal Kyani.

The chief minister, who is the patron-in-chief of the cadet college, said the Rs1.5 billion project had been launched in a rural area of Karachi. The objective of the project, he said, was to groom talented students of rural areas so that they could join the Pakistan Army.

“This is why the project has been handed over to Corps Commander Karachi Lt-General Naveed Mukhtar,” he said and added “ he is the man of commitment and can make the college one of the best institutions in Asia.”

Giving a presentation, GOC Major General Shahzad Naeem said that the project stretched over 100 acres, was located at a distance of 30 kilometers from the Jinnah Terminal and had a residential complex and campus within the boundary wall.

The administration block, two academic blocks, hostels, store rooms, cadet messes, sciences labs, four computer labs, a library, an auditorium, a gymnasium, a badminton hall, a tennis court, a swimming pool, staff residence, bachelors flats, a staff club, a hospital/dispensary, a commercial area, a canteen, a mosque, a parade ground, a shooting range, cricket and hockey and football grounds and a riding club were near completion, he said. “Over 80 percent of construction work has been completed,” he said.

He said that advertisement for the selection of the principal of the college had been given in national press, and the principal would be a retired brigadier of the Pakistan Army with at least 10 years’ experience.

He added that advertisement for necessary staff was also in the process.

At this, the corps commander said that the entire process of hiring the staff would be completed by the end of April. “I want to start the college initially with 60 cadets shortly; otherwise, it has the capacity of 300 cadets which would be completed in five years,” he added.

He said the college would have special security arrangements for which a comprehensive plan had been worked out.

The chief minister said he would provide funds for the entire project, including security, without any delay. “I just want to realise my dream by making this project a historic one,” he said.

The corps commander said the chief minister was kind enough to trust him a lot and had assigned him a big task. “Inshallah I would try my best to achieve the target the chief minister has set,” he vowed.

The board approved the uniform of cadets, which would be khaki with a green beret, college shoulder titles, emblem as cap badge, web belt, Khaki jersy (winter) black DMS and black socks. The college would have four cadet houses, Jinnah, Iqbal, Lateef and Shahbaz.

It was also decided in the meeting that Sindhi language would also be taught as a subject in the college. “The education and training of the cadets would be extraordinary and everyone would be keen to put his/her child in the Cadet College Gadap,” the corps commander said.

The chief minister assured the Board of Governors of his full support for the completion of the project. He approved the induction of the finance secretary into the board of the college so that their financial requirements could be made accordingly.