Universities’ staff stage massive protest against govt

PESHAWAR: The academic and non-academic staff of different universities Thursday staged a massive protest to press the government to withdraw the Higher Education Department’s letter to the public sector varsities and accept their other demands.

The teachers and other employees started gathering at the University of Engineering and Technology (UET)’s Chowk in the early morning and then launched a protest march towards the main Jamrud Road.

Chanting slogans and holding banners, the large number of protesting employees passed through Road No. 2 of the University of Peshawar, main Jamrud Road, Palosai Road and then entered the university from a separate gate.

Owing to a huge number of protestors, the roads remained blocked for some time. The protestors through slogans were demanding of the government to withdraw the HED’s letter, increase higher education’s budget and accept their other demands.

The protest march was led by the provincial president of the Federation of All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Association (FAPUASA) President Dr Shah Alam, President, Peshawar University Teachers Association (PUTA) Dr Fazle Nasir, President, All Universities Employees Federation Salahuddin, President, Engineering University Teachers Association (EUTA) Dr Feroz Shah and others.

The protestors continued the protest rally to the PUTA Chowk in the University of Peshawar where it converted into a public gathering. Dr Shah Alam, Dr Fazle Nasir and others addressed the gathering.

The speakers on the occasion came down hard on the government for undue interference in the universities affairs and playing with the autonomy of the higher education institutions.

They said the present government had reduced the budget for higher education from Rs 114 billion to Rs 64 billion due to which the universities were at the verge of a collapse. They urged the provincial government to establish a higher education commission at the provincial level. They said that Punjab and Sindh had higher education commissions at the provincial level and a similar commission should be established here.

The speakers condemned vice-chancellor University of Peshawar Dr Mohammad Idrees after accusing him of lodging a first information report against office-bearers of the employees association to foil the protest.

They were critical of the HED for interfering in the universities’ affairs. They said the government should withdraw forthwith the decision of cutting allowances of the universities’ employees. The speakers urged the KP government to allocate Rs 150 billion for higher education in the upcoming budget.

They warned of continuing the protest campaign if the government failed to meet their demands. Another protest demonstration is scheduled to be held in the Agriculture University Peshawar today (Friday).

The speakers threatened to stage a big demonstration outside the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly.