FAISALABAD: University of Agriculture Faisalabad Vice-chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmed has issued an order appointing his own self as head of a USAID-funded project at the varsity. He will assume the charge after his retirement.

According to the order issued by Dr Ahmad, who is going to retire as UAF vice chancellor after one year or so, he will assume the charge of director of the Centre for Advanced Studies in Food Security Agriculture (CAS-FSA) during the last three years of the USAID-funded project.

Under the five-year project worth $30 million, as many as 500 foreign scholarships will be given to the varsity students.

Under the CAS five chairs -- Climate Chairs, Bio Technology, Precision Agriculture; Agriculture Policy and Outreach -- have been set up.

Though the VC claims he has been appointed the CAS director for three years by the government, the notification issued by the varsity’s Deputy Registrar Inam Qadir to the effect “has been issued in pursuance of the syndicate order” issued on Dec 29 last year.

The VC had no reply when he was asked to share the appointment order “issued by the government”.

The project was initiated at the UAF in January 2015 and the former VC, Dr Bashir Ahmed, was notified as its director for first two years, who had taken the charge on Jan 9.

Similarly, Dr Sultan Habibullah was appointed as deputy director, Irfan Abbas as director admin, Farjeel Javed as M&E specialist and Dr Sahar Munir as F&G manager.

Dr Ashfaq Ahmed is for climate change chair, Dr Babar Shahbaz for outreach chair, Dr Bushra Sadia for biotechnology chair and Dr Muhammad Jehanzeb Masood for precision agriculture chair.

Five officials assumed charge of their offices on Jan 7 and remaining till Jan 15, prior to the issuance of the notification which was issued on Jan 20 last.

The notification read “In pursuance of the decision of the syndicate taken at its meeting held on Dec 29 last year, the Center for Advance Studies in Food Security-Agriculture (CAS-FSA), University of Agriculture Faisalabad, with effect from the dates of joining.”

The notification mentions no specific date when Dr Ahmed will join the office as director. Besides, except Dr Ahmed, no one else has been named as successor to any of the officials.

Dr Ahmed had also issued a notification of his salary in management pay scale-1 that was above his entitlement. Later, the Punjab government asked the VC to return the excessive amount he had received.

A Syndicate member, Rao Kashif Raheem, who is an MPA of the PML-N from Samundri, said he had no knowledge when syndicate had authorised Dr Ahmed to appoint himself as director of the project.

He wondered how merit would be ensured when the chairman of Syndicate would make his appointment as head of a foreign-funded project on his own.

Published in Dawn, December 17th, 2015