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HYDERABAD, April 28: Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz has assured a delegation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement that funds for the Hyderabad Development Package and development schemes for other districts of Sindh would soon be released.
The delegation, comprising MQM’s parliamentary leader in the Sindh Assembly Kanwar Naveed Jamil, Federal Ports and Shipping Minister Babar Ghauri and Sindh Transport and Labour Minister Adil Siddiqui, had met the prime minister in Islamabad on Tuesday.
The delegation members held detailed discussions with Mr Aziz regarding development activities in Sindh, including newly-created districts.
According to Mr Jamil, they requested the prime minister to look into the release of Rs10.5 billion of the Hyderabad package that was announced by former Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali in September 2003 on behalf of President Gen Pervez Musharraf.
He said the prime minister had assured them that he would personally visit Hyderabad in this regard. He said Mr Aziz had asked them to prepare proposals for development work for which funds would be released.
The Sindh government has already allocated Rs1 billion in the ongoing fiscal year for the Hyderabad package.
The working committee of the project, headed by the adviser to the Sindh chief minister on local bodes and spatial development, Waseem Akhtar, has appointed a consultant for the project and re-advertised the post of the project director.
Mr Jamil said development-related issues of other districts were also brought into the notice of the prime minister for which he also gave an assurance that required funds would be released.
He said the issue of funds for the Karachi mass transit programme was also raised at the meeting.
ADMISSION ARRANGEMENTS: Arrangements for admission of around 3,000 students in the next academic year are being made with construction of new blocks, classrooms, libraries and laboratories in various colleges of the defunct Hyderabad district.
The arrangements will be completed before the commencement of the new fiscal year to increase the number of students.
There are 27 colleges for boys and girls in the defunct Hyderabad district. Currently, 28,393 students are studying at the colleges.
The development works are being carried out from funds under quotas of MNAs and MPAs funds. Provincial and districts governments have also allocated funds for the purpose.
The district education officer of the defunct Hyderabad district, Prof Ali Akbar Shah, said work to upgrade Tando Mohammad Khan Girls’ College was continuing and after completion of the work, 500 more students could be admitted to the B.Sc programme. Likewise, he said, 500 more students would be admitted to the Zubeda Girls College in the commerce section. An equal number of students would be admitted to the B.Sc course at the Government Nazareth Girls’ College and classes of B.Com would be started at the Shah Latif Girls’ College with 500 fresh admissions as four class rooms had been constructed there from funds of MNA Prof Khalid Wahab.
New classrooms are also being constructed at the Sachal Commerce College to accommodate around 500 new students.
The education department has moved for affiliation of Zubeda and Shah Latif girls’ colleges and the Qasimabad boys’ college with the University of Sindh for classes of BCS. After affiliation, around 40 to 50 students would be admitted to the colleges.
A committee of university teachers is supposed to visit the colleges to oversee arrangements for classes, libraries and laboratories.
The DO, education, said MNAs Prof Khalid Wahab and Sahibzada Abul Khair Mohammad Zubair and MPAs Abdul Rehman Rajput, Aslam Parvez and Farzana Saeed had allocated funds of their quotas for the colleges.
The education departments are also planning setting up of an audio/video laboratory to improve English skills of students. College teachers will be also trained.
Mr Shah said the Latifabad Government Degree College had been shifted to its own building in Kohsar.
He said postgraduate classes were being held at the old campus. He said with the shifting of the college, 1,000 students could be enrolled in intermediate classes.
CHARAS SEIZED: The Site police on Thursday arrested one person and seized 40 kilograms of charas from him on Mirpurkhas-Hyderabad road.
In a raid conducted near the Dargah Asadullah Shah whereas Abdul Wahab Achakzai, who had came form Chamman, was nabbed by police.
Stamps of Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan were affixed on the narcotics which indicated that it was being brought from that country.
The Site SHO said that a case under the Narcotic Act has been lodged.
