Teachers’ body withdraws strike call

LAHORE:Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Associations (FAPUASA) Pakistan has withdrawn its strike call after a meeting with Punjab Minister of Higher Education who ensured that all demands and concerns would be addressed on priority.

A delegation led by FAPUASA President Dr Amjad Magsi, met with the Minister of Higher Education Rana Sikander Hayat. The delegation included Dr Ahtisham Ali, Central Information Secretary, Dr Muhammad Islam, Secretary of PU ASA, and Dr Ghalib Ata, Vice President of PU ASA.

The FAPUASA delegation addressed the critical issues confronting the university faculty, emphasising the urgent need for attention and action on these matters. The delegation raised the issue of the restoration of a 25% tax rebate for the teachers and researchers and the minister assured to extend his full support in getting the notification of the tax rebate at the earliest.

Dr Amjad Magsi highlighted the anomaly regarding the Disparity Reduction Allowance and asserted that during the initial announcement of the DRA, universities were unjustly excluded as autonomous bodies. It is essential that DRA is granted to universities to uphold fair treatment, and it should also extend to Grades 20 and 21 to ensure equity across the board. The minister has committed to addressing this matter with the Finance department, advocating for the inclusion of university teachers in particular in discussions regarding the DRA.

PU awards PhD degrees to 10 scholars

Punjab University (PU) has awarded PhD degrees to 10 of its scholars. According to details, Kashif Raza has been awarded PhD degree in the subject of International Relations, Ghulam Rasool in Urdu, Hina Yaqub in Geography, Sadaf Ijaz in Environmental Sciences, Tayyaba Rafique in Total Quality Management, Shilata Pokharel in International Relations, Ahmed Bilal in Applied Psychology, Naila Shoaib in Microbiology & Molecular Genetics, Mamoona Hameed in

Zoology and Sehrish Shabbir in Persian.