Dr Mohammad Asif assumes charge as UoP VC

PESHAWAR: Dr Mohammad Asif Khan on Monday assumed charge as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Peshawar (UoP) exactly two months after his appointment.

He has pledged to resume the stalled functioning of the academic and statutory bodies of the university to save the time of students.

The appointment of Dr Mohammad Asif as vice-chancellor the UoP was notified on June 9, this year.

However, he couldn’t join the office due to his responsibilities as vice-chancellor of the Karakorum International University.

The Karakorum International University is a federal institution and the process of relieving that office took him two months as the summary had to be approved by the President of Pakistan after being processed by the Ministry of Kashmir and Northern Areas Affairs through the Prime Minister’s House.

The delay in joining his office triggered some rumours in the university. However, he proved all those rumours baseless by joining the office.

Talking to The News after taking charge, Dr Mohammad Asif said that his top priority was to restart the university functions in an efficient manner.

He said the Academic Council, Selection Board and advanced study and research boards have been unable to meet since long.

The delay in their meetings and functioning were certainly affecting the students.

“Students’ well-being is our topmost priority and their time would not be wasted further. These bodies would soon be made functional,” he remarked.

Also, the statutory bodies like the university’s Senate and Syndicate, which were dormant during the transitional period, would soon resume functioning. 

Meanwhile, representatives of Peshawar University Teachers Association, teachers and other officers of the university visited the vice-chancellor’s office to felicitate Dr Mohammad Asif on joining the university.

Dr Asif is among the leading academicians and geologists of the province. He got BSc (Hons) and MSc from the University of Peshawar, followed by his PhD from Imperial College, London, the UK in 1988.

He completed four post-doctorate fellowships at the Universities of Oxford, Texas (Dallas), Pen State and Lehigh in USA and UK. He started his career at the National Centre of Excellence in Geology, the University of Peshawar in 1981 where he progressed to the position of full professor in 1998. He was made the director of the centre in 2005.

Dr Asif was appointed as vice-chancellor Karakoram International University, Gilgit-Baltistan in 2014.

In recognition of his contributions in teaching, research and higher education management, Dr Asif has been decorated with a number of national and international awards and fellowships, including the Civil Award of Tamgha-i-Imtiaz (2000), Honorary Fellowship of the Geological Society London (2008), Fellowship of Pakistan Academy of Sciences and Distinguished National Professorship by the HEC.

He has published more than 100 research papers, two coloured geological maps, three books including the one published by the Geological Society of London. His publications carry an Impact Factor of 103.2 and Citation Index of 1180.