Colleges with low enrolment to be outsourced: minister

LAHORE: Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat on Friday announced that general and commerce colleges across the province facing low student enrolment will be outsourced.

In a video message shared on social media, the minister further said that, like public schools, a new rationalisation policy was also being introduced in government colleges. Under the new policy, surplus teaching staff in under-enrolled institutions would be reassigned to colleges where they are needed.

According to the minister, over 750 government colleges in Punjab will undergo rationalisation based on student-teacher ratios. The decision to outsource low-enrolment colleges is expected to spark strong backlash from college faculty and education stakeholders, much like the resistance seen during the outsourcing of public schools.

Critics argue that the move appears less about reform and more about promoting costly private sector models at the expense of accessible public education. Unlike schools, public colleges remain the preferred choice for many families due to their affordable fee structure and relatively strong academic reputation.

Stakeholders contend that instead of handing over institutions to private operators, the government should focus on improving internal management, strengthening oversight and addressing systemic inefficiencies within the Higher Education Department (HED) itself. It is pertinent to mention here that college faculty have been given a three-month window to improve enrolment figures. The minister also warned that institutions found to be inflating enrolment numbers or submitting fake data would face strict action. Rana Sikandar also revealed that commerce colleges will be transformed into e-commerce colleges to align with market needs and digital trends. It is also pertinent to mention that a similar move in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa faced immediate backlash. On October 2, the KP cabinet approved the outsourcing of selected schools and colleges with low student enrolment. The decision sparked strong protests from students and teachers across the province, who viewed it as a step toward privatising public education.

In response to a petition challenging the move, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) on October 9 suspended the provincial government’s notification, halting the implementation of the outsourcing plan until further notice. The court issued notices to key officials and scheduled the next hearing for October 29, seeking detailed responses from the government on the legality and implications of the decision. The Peshawar High Court's suspension of the KP government's outsourcing plan remains in effect, with no new ruling reported after Oct. 29.

Talking to The News, Punjab Professors and Lecturers Association (PPLA) President Faiza Raana strongly criticised the minister's decision to outsource low-enrolment colleges, describing it as a one-sided move taken without any consultation with college faculty. She warned that such decisions would be opposed at all levels, including through public demonstrations if necessary.

The PPLA president also pointed out that the teaching workforce in public colleges was already under strain, with only 18,000 out of 23,000 sanctioned posts currently filled and many of those teachers nearing retirement.

She argued that instead of relying on temporary College Teaching Interns (CTIs), the government should prioritise permanent recruitment and long-term planning. “Stopgap arrangements like CTIs won’t solve the crisis. We need qualified, full-time educators and a serious commitment to strengthening public colleges,” she said.

Faiza also emphasised the difference between public and private institutions, noting that public colleges offer larger campuses and better-qualified faculty, while many private colleges operate from rented buildings with limited facilities.

“The government should invest in public colleges, not abandoning them,” she added. “We need modern subjects like artificial intelligence and skill-based education introduced within the public system, not handed over to private operators,” the PPLA president said.