Unrest as financial crisis deepens in Agriculture University Peshawar

PESHAWAR: Owing to severe financial crisis, the Agriculture University has been unable to pay salaries and pensions to its employees.

This has caused unrest among the teaching and managerial staff of the university. The teaching and non-teaching staffers of the Agriculture University Peshawar have made a demand from the provincial government and the Higher Education Commission to look into the matter and issue a bailout package for the university to save it from closure. The Joint Action Council of the university employees held its meeting while the executive council of the AUTA called an emergency meeting on Tuesday to declare that they would boycott their duty and the university may face closure, if the government failed to resolve the matter.

Presided over by its president, the AUTA meeting demanded Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Jahan Bakht to provide full salary and pension including 25 percent arrears for the month of November to the employees at the earliest. The meeting expressed serious reservations over the response of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and the Higher Education Commission to the financial crisis of the university. The meeting noted that ignoring the severe financial situation at the Agriculture University, the provincial government has launched its new campus in Swat, the native district of the chief minister.

Sixteen SHOs reshuffled

Sixteen police officers were transferred in the capital city on Tuesday. According to a notification issued on Tuesday, Waris Khan was posted at the Hashtnagri as station house officer, Javed Akhtar Faqirabad SHO, Sardar Hussain Bhanamari SHO, Ahmad Gul Paharipura SHO. Ahmadullah was posted as Hayatabad Police Station, Umar Afridi was posted as SHO Chamkani Police Station, Razi Khan SHO Mathra Police Station, Naeem Haider SHO Yakatoot Police Station, Aizaz Alam SHO Regi Police Station and Naeem Khan SHO University Town Police Station. According to the notification, Wajid Khan was posted in the Campus Peace Corps, Ijaz Khan in the investigation wing, Sadiq Shah transferred to the traffic unit, Tehseenullah posted as acting SHO of Matani while Ehsan Marwat was posted as in-charge security of the judicial complex. The SHOs of various police stations were changed several times during the last few months.

The new CCPO Mohammad Ali Gandapur and SSP Operations Zahoor Afridi directed the newly-posted SHOs to go after the criminal rings as well as ice dealers.