Public-sector universities in Pakistan have been left in lurch due to major financial crises. A 50 per cent increase in the salaries of government employees  was announced in the federal budget; however 99 per cent of universities were unable to deliver this increment to teachers due to financial constraints. On September 22, all academic activity at Karachi University was stopped in accordance with the decision made by All Pakistan Universities Academic Staff Associations (FAPUASSA). In a meeting held by the Karachi University Teachers’ Society (Kuts), the participants called for the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to be abolished, which according to them was the reason behind the problems faced by the public-sector universities. While across the country, public-sector universities remained closed due to protests by teachers.

The governors of Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as vice-chancellors of public-sector universities, had approached government officials about their inability to increase the salaries of their employees due to a financial crunch. According to these officials, “the raise in salary meant an additional burden of Rs 7 billion, and universities had no money to meet the expenditure.”  But the question remains, is investment in higher education, a burden?

But in order to understand why these vice-chancellors said this, we need to backtrack. Vice-chancellors from 71 public universities threatened to resign en bloc against the government’s refusal to allocate the required funds for higher education. The HEC is cash-strapped and has had to cut back on research opportunities for students and professors as well as grants and scholarships. Although Rs 15.7 billion has been allocated for the development of universities under the current fiscal PSDP, only Rs 1.5 billion has been released. HEC officials said they were already facing a deficit which is why some 300 development schemes have been postponed as well. This is expected to worsen in the coming months since the government may further reduce the budget in the PSDP to spend more towards rehabilitation and reconstruction for the flood-affected areas.

Vice chancellors of various public sector universities had been warning the government about the monetary crunch, but were forced to agitate after the federal minister of finance, Dr Abdul Hafeez Sheikh refused to provide funds for the HEC and instead asked the HEC to generate funds on its “own resources.” If the fee for higher education is raised, we will be marginalising the millions of students who are unable to bear the costs of higher education. Already, just a faction of our youth is enrolled in PhD programmes – do we want to lose out on these intelligent minds? At the same meeting with Dr Sheikh, the vice-chancellors were told that the government had more “compelling commitments than higher education.”

Demanding justified salaries to the universities staff is not only one issue. Universities also need to build laboratories, equipment, expand libraries, better IT facilities and such to be able to educate their students. Many universities in the country bear testament that they are extremely low on funds: unpainted walls, empty labs with no updated equipment and construction of hostels and classrooms left mid-way.

The Institute of Sustainable Halophytes Utilisation (ISHU) established in 2009 at KU, is one example which has achieved remarkable success  and holds the only UNESCO chair of Halophytes in the world. Dr. Ajmal Khan, director of ISHU stated that they were able to publish peer reviewed papers and articles, set up pilot projects, made new verities but everything came to a grinding halt once the government stopped their funding. Their hard work and efforts over the years, is in vain and of no use.

HEC former chairman Dr Atta ur Rehman is known for reviving higher education and encouraging research methodologies in Pakistan. During his tenure (incidentally, it was during Musharraf’s regime), the budget for science, technology and higher education increased tremendously and, Pakistani students were able to improve in this sector by leaps and bounds; thousands of students were sent abroad to pursue their PhD and MPhils at leading universities in the world, new universities and departments were established, labs were provided state of the art scientific instruments, research papers from Pakistan were received and published by international publications.

Now, the honeymoon period of science and higher education in Pakistan is over. Horrible news came from thousands of students who were sent abroad for studies are now facing severe financial problems. Around 4,000 students may have to cut short their studies and return home without degrees.  According to first-hand accounts, many students were seen begging at a mosque in London for financial help!

Literacy, higher education and science were always on low priority of major Pakistani government. According to eminent Pakistani physicist, Dr. I H Usmani, he once  saw a science teacher explaining a chemistry practical by mere gestures and no laboratory tools or equipment. The students had to imagine what the reaction of sulphuric acid and iron fillings would lead to instead of seeing it happen in front of their eyes. If you think that the situation in schools has changed since Dr. Usmani’s visit to a school, take a look at any school in the remote areas of Balochistan or Sindh. According to Dr. Usmani, the finance ministry is the main hurdle in the development of science and education in Pakistan.

Back in the day, when Dr Abdus Salam, sent a proposal for the International Center for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) ) in Pakistan to Ayub Khan, it was rejected on grounds that it wouldn’t foster learning or research, but would only provide space for scholars and researchers to live in. Dr Salam then sent the same proposal to Italy where it was approved and now, the ICTP is the center of research and advanced studies in the world.

Higher education, development of science and technology are only ways for a country and for the nation to progress. In the words of Dr. Salim uz Zaman Siddiqui, education and science need patience as well as long-term efforts, including financial, in order for it to be sustainable and to show results.

Famous cosmologist, Stephen Hawking once wrote that during World War II, UK and Germany were engaged in fierce warfare but had reached an understanding that neither side would launch an attack on Oxford, Cambridge, Heidelberg and Göttingen, because the four places are great centers for learning and higher education!

Incredibly, even though we are in a position to sustain and promote higher education, our elected government is not providing much to help preserve our institutes of learning.

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.