PESHAWAR: The ‘corrective measures’ taken by University of Peshawar coupled with financial assistance from federal and provincial governments helped to steer the varsity of Rs1.3 billion deficit to posting of Rs137 million surplus budget.

According to official documents, the financial condition of the university had been alarming in the start of 2021 that compelled the university administration to pay only basic salary to its employees on Feb 1, 2021.

The non-payment of full salaries had drawn criticism from the circles inside and outside the university but the administration had no other option, state the documents.

The shortfall in the university’s budget started in 2011-12 which increased with the passing of time. The documents show that outstanding liabilities as on Jan 1, 2021 were Rs1.3 billion, which included Rs203 million in pension, Rs395 loan and Rs638 million shortfall of the previous year (2020-21) and Rs73 million other payable amount.

Varsity posts Rs137 million surplus budget

In the meanwhile, situation worsened in the university and it decided to increase the fee, which forced the students to start protest. The government ordered its Provincial Inspection Team (PIT) to probe the matter.

In its detailed inquiry conducted last year, PIT stated that the university financially sunk owing to illegal or irregular appointments of 2,756 employees during the past one decade and lavish expenditures including payment of several kinds of allowances to unauthorised staffers.

The 63-page inquiry report established that the UoP administration had been paying huge amount every year to its employees under different heads for which they were not entitled.

To shoulder the financially sinking UoP, the federal and provincial governments provided additional grants of Rs720 million and Rs320 million respectively to it previous year.

By adopting the corrective measures recommended by PIT in its report and some additional steps taken by the university administration, UoP saved Rs433 million annually after withdrawing some unauthorised financial benefits from the employees. Another Rs64.4 million will be saved by withdrawing the orderly allowance from the teachers.

According to official documents, 550 contract employees have been laid off as corrective measures because these employees were hired unnecessarily in different periods.

Other corrective measures adopted to steer the university out of financial crisis include payment of medical allowance at a rate fixed by the provincial government for its employees. The university previously paid medical allowance to employees at the higher rate of federal government.

The university has also discontinued the conveyance allowance during vacation, stopped paying fuel charges and residence telephone bills besides revising workload policy.

The documents reveal that the scions of employees were studying in the university and its sister institutions without paying any fee. They have started paying half tuition fee now.

The revenue from Baragali campus of the university has also increased and the administration has reduced non-salary expenditures. The vice-chancellor faced a lot of criticism for taking these measures but it was inevitable as the great seat of learning was sinking, say the documents.

A senior official of the UoP administration told Dawn that financial condition of the varsity became stable, however, it could be deteriorated again if Higher Education Commission didn’t increase its annual financial grant proportionate to increase in salaries of employees.

He said that HEC annually made an increase of 7 per cent in its grant released to university while the government increased salaries of employees by 10 to 15 per cent, so the gap would definitely widened with the passing of time.

The official said that despite laying off 550 contract employees, the number of existing non-teaching regular staff was more than the criteria set by HEC. According to the HEC criteria, the ratio of non-teaching staff for one teacher is 1.5, however, currently 2.8 non-teaching staff is working for one teacher in the university, which is almost double to the set criteria.

Keeping in view the corrective measures by UoP, Governor Shah Farman, who is chancellor of the public sector universities in the province, recently held a meeting with all VCs and directed them to follow in the footprint of UoP.

Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2022