Young Doctors Leave for Nobel Laureates Meeting 6

Transcription

1 Quality Agriculture Research Needed to Feed Increasing Population: Dr. Laghari 2 June 2011 Young Doctors Leave for Nobel Laureates Meeting 6 Scholarships for Balochistan & FATA 20 HEC to Carry Out Ranking of Universities HEC Scholar Wins Social Science Prize in France German-Pakistani Research Collaboration

2 Contents 2 Dr. Laghari Visits UAF 3 4 COMMISSION EVENTS HEC to Carry Out Ranking of Universities Dr. Laghari Inaugurates The News Education Expo-2011" 5 HEC Regional Centres to be Upgraded to Enhance Provincial Coordination 6 Five Young Doctors Leave for Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting rd HEC Stands 3 in Weightlifting Championship German-Pakistani Research Collaboration Programme Launched 99 Scholarships Approved under HEC-USAID Merit and Needs based Programme 11 Meeting of 13 QECs of Private Universities CEMB Develops Insect-Resistant Cotton Variety SPSS Workshop for Project Employees HEC Student Participates in Space Camp at US Turnitin Demonstration at UVAS through Video Conference 12 HEC Scholar Wins Social Science Prize in France UNIVERSITY NEWS HEC News & Views is published every month. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without prior written permission of the publisher. The views expressed by authors in the articles is their sole responsibility and not of HEC. The Commission would like to thank all the institutions and individuals who contributed information and photographs for this Magazine Rector NUST Leads Session in Talloires Network Conference nd 2 Meeting of Industry-Academia Linkage at UET Taxila Research Shows Use of Naswar May Lead to Cancer GIKI, Iraqi Varsities to Launch Joint Ventures PIEAS Researchers Working on Cancer Therapy Aayesha Ikram Editor Graphic Designer Raja Ahmad Nadeem Waseem Khaliqdad Reporter Publisher: Higher Education Commission, Pakistan

3 Commission Events Chairperson Visits UAF Quality Agriculture Research Needed to Feed Increasing Population: Dr. Laghari Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairperson, Higher Education Commission visited the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF) to preside over the concluding session of an international seminar on 'Crop Management' organized by the Department of Agronomy, besides addressing the participants of Campus Women Voice. Addressing the seminar, the Chairperson urged the agricultural scientists to execute more quality research to feed the increasing population as 68 million people would be added to the population in the next 20 years that is more than the total population of Germany. He maintained that as many as 95 per cent of the total researches across the globe had been coming from the West till 1990 but now the trend is changing and the East is dominating the West in the field of research. Talking about agricultural challenges, he said that in the field, there are numerous dimensions including food security, climate changes, changing pattern of rains, temperature, water, and energy, pattern and agro-ecological zones. He said that various universities were striving to have a centre of excellence but UAF has a firm ground and justification to have a centre of excellence in the food security that would certainly address the above concerns befittingly. Dr. Iqrar Ahmed Khan, Vice Chancellor, UAF said that it is the age of agronomy, and with more focus on it we can cope with the food challenges. He urged the agronomists to come up with innovative ideas to develop agriculture at par with the modern world. He said that by the next year, the University is likely to have a Centre of Excellence in Food Security. Two more Centres of Excellence would be set up in public sector universities of the country, he added. He said that the women complex established at UAF is the best complex among all public sector universities. Talking about women contribution in education, he said that a decade ago, only 35 per cent of literate people were women. 2

4 Commission Events A positive trend is being witnessed in the ratio of women education as 45 of them are now women. There is a need to promote gender equality in the society and to encourage women in every field of life, he said. The Chairperson visited the PARS experimental farms and witnessed indigenous drip irrigation technology installed at Agricultural Engineering Research Farm. He also visited post-harvest laboratory comprising controlled atmosphere technology and laboratories of National Institute of Food Science and Technology. Dr. Laghari inspected extrusion plant at the Institute of Horticultural Sciences as well. He also inaugurated the newly-constructed hostels at Postgraduate Agricultural Research Station (PARS) as well as Women Complex comprising three different hostels at University's main campus. Universities to Provide Data by July 15, 2011 HEC to Carry Out Ranking of Universities Aiming at International Compatibility: Dr. Laghari Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairperson, Higher Education Commission (HEC) has urged the universities to strengthen their indigenous quality culture and make wholehearted efforts to improve their international visibility. He was addressing, through video conferencing, the focal persons of public and private universities of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab on Monday, in connection with the HEC initiative to carry out quality based ranking of higher education institutions (HEIs) aiming at international compatibility, primarily based on the QS Ranking System acceptable widely across countries. In this regard, all public and private universities of the country have been asked to provide data by July 15, The Statistical Information Unit (SIU), HEC held an orientation session for universities of four provinces and Federal area. Dr. Muhammad Ismail, Director, Quality Enhancement Cell, NUST was the facilitator who shared his experiences of NUST in the context of QS ranking. Ms. Zia Batool, Director General, Quality Assurance, HEC gave the opening remarks and introduced different initiatives of HEC in the context of quality assurance. The Chairperson said that HEC has taken various initiatives to bring HEIs of Pakistan at par with international standards. Ranking is one of the measures to scale the success of efforts to achieve international competitiveness in education research and innovation. Since QS World Ranking is considered as one of the effective quality based ranking of HEIs at international level so HEC has desired to build the capacity of Pakistani universities to get more international visibility through reflection in international rankings including QS Ranking, he said. While requesting the universities to meet the deadline for provision of authentic data, Dr. Laghari said that university rankings are very important for students, parents, employers, government organizations, policy makers and other stakeholders. The results of rankings change the context in which universities function. It is basically a self-learning and selfimproving exercise which benefits the academic and research communities programmes of the country. Universities which fail to provide data will be ranked zero by placing them at the bottom in the ranking list, he added. In his presentation, Dr. Ismail explained the significance of university ranking as well as various ranking systems currently prevalent around the globe, while focusing on status and process of QS Ranking. 3

5 Dr. Laghari Inaugurates The News Education Expo 2011 D r. J a v a i d R. L a g h a r i, C h a i r p e r s o n, H i g h e r Education Commission (HEC) i n a u g u r a t e d T h e N e w s Education Expo 2011 at C o n v e n t i o n C e n t r e, Islamabad. A large number of people from different walks of life turned up at the two-day event, which was held at Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore from June 11-12, June and June 27-28, respectively. The Expo, organised by the Jang Media Group, attracted many exhibitors including HEC, universities, education consultants, United States Education Foundation in Pakistan, British Council and other stakeholders. HEC also set up stalls at three s t a t i o n s. H u n d r e d s o f students, faculty members, parents and other visitors visited the stall to seek information regarding local and foreign scholarships, research grants, attestation procedure, recognition of universities, digital library, quality criteria, etc. Under the supervision of Ms. Aayesha Ikram, Director (Media), all the arrangements were coordinated by Syed Ali Raza, Project Manager (Video C o n f e r e n c i n g ). O t h e r members of the team included Mr. Shaikh Muhammad Ali, Project Director (HRD) and Ms Fareeda Anjum, Deputy Director (R&D) in Islamabad, Mr. Wasim Hashmi, Project Director (HRD) and Mr. Nouman Naseer, Assistant Director (R&D) in Karachi, and Mr. Waqas Ahmad Chaudhry, Project Director (HRD) and Mr. Muhammad Raza, Assistant Director (R&D) in Lahore. HEC Regional Centres at Lahore and Karachi extended all-out support and facilitated the teams in best possible manner. Publicity material including flyers, brochures, monthly magazine, annual report were displayed on the stall for distribution among the visitors. HEC teams also c o n d u c t e d s p e c i a l presentations to give an overview of different activities as well as achievements of the C o m m i s s i o n s i n c e i t s inception in

6 Commission Events HEC Regional Centres to be Upgraded to Enhance Provincial Coordination The major objective is to address the concerns of the smaller and less-developed provinces on the equitable distribution of resources, and on the provision of enhanced services at provincial capitals. In order to have a more efficient role of the provinces in policy making of higher education sector and its effective implementation, the H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n Commission has constituted four Provincial Consultative Groups (PCGs) who will make r e c o m m e n d a t i o n s f o r strengthening the role of HEC Regional Centres in all the four provinces. The major objective is to address the concerns of the smaller and less-developed provinces on the equitable distribution of resources, and on the provision of enhanced services at provincial capitals. These Groups will assess the current role of HEC Regional Centres, identify those functionalities of HEC main office which are transferable to R e g i o n a l C e n t r e s o n immediate basis and identify those powers/function which may be transferred in future. Each Group, headed by a Vice Chancellor, will develop m e c h a n i s m f o r f o r m a l c o n s u l t a t i o n w i t h t h e Provincial Governments, Chancellor's office and Vice Chancellors in the region, besides identifying indicators for determining the successful operation of HEC Regional Centres. Meetings of the PCG will be held via video conference to save time. The deadline for d e l i v e r i n g f i n a l s e t o f recommendations for each Regional Centre is by June 30, 2011, while the final meeting of Chairpersons of PCGs will be held at HEC Secretariat on July 15, 2011 and the final set of recommendations will be put u p f o r a p p r o v a l o f Chairperson by July 20, New staffing requirements for the Regional Centres will be fulfilled and a Director General will head each Centre who would ensure that all the tasks as agreed to by the PCG can be actually executed. D r. A b d u l N a b i, V i c e Chancellor, University of Balochistan, Quetta; Dr. Nasser Ali Khan, Director, Institute of Management Sciences, Peshawar; Dr. M u j a h i d K a m r a n, V i c e Chancellor, University of the Punjab, Lahore; and Dr. U.A.G. Isani, Vice Chancellor, Iqra University, Karachi will head the PCGs for Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh, respectively Members of the PCGs include (Balochistan) Dr. Abdul H a m e e d B a j o i, V i c e C h a n c e l l o r, L a s b e l a University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Sciences, Uthal; Dr. Shakeel Ahmed Roshan, Vice Chancellor, Al- Had Islamic University, Quetta; Secretary Education, Government of Balochistan (KPK) Dr. Mansoor Akbar Kundi, Vice Chancellor, Gomal University, D.I. Khan; Dr. Israr Khan Khattak, Vice Chancellor, City University, Peshawar; Secretary (Higher Education), Government of KPK (Punjab) Dr. Muhammad Mukhtar, Vice Chancellor, I s l a m i a U n i v e r s i t y, Bahawalpur; Dr. Zafar Iqbal, Vice Chancellor, Superior College University, Lahore; Secretary (Higher Education), Government of the Punjab; Dr. Masood Hameed Khan, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi; Dr. A.Q. Mughal, Vice Chancellor, Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam; and Secretary (Education), Government of Sindh. HEC representatives in P C G s i n c l u d e M r. Muhammad Javed Khan, Adviser Academic, Mr. Fida Hussain, Director General, Quality Assurance Agency and Dr. M. Mazhar Saeed, D i r e c t o r G e n e r a l, A d m i n i s t r a t i o n a n d Coordination. 5

7 Commission Events Five Young Doctors Leave for Lindau Nobel Laureates Meeting Youth our only hope for the future - Dr. Laghari Five outstanding young doctors are all set to make once in a lifetime trip to Lindau Germany to meet 25 Nobel Laureates under the programme sponsored by the Higher Education Commission and Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. Selection was made by the German Council. Maryam Alam Khan graduate of Khyber Medical College, Wafa Omer, Army Medical College, Syed Imran Shah, King Edward Medical College, Ehsan Ullah, Bahawalpur Medical College and Kanwal Zulfikar Abbotabad Medical College respectively expressed their excitement for the impending visit on the eve of their departure during a meeting with Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairman Higher Education Commission. The Chairman congratulated them on their selection and advised them to make a mark for Pakistan in the gathering of 570 international students from over 60 countries who would be attending the event. He encouraged them to glean useful information regarding higher studies and to contribute positively, be it clinical or research in their choice of profession. 'Youth are our only hope for the future', said Dr. Laghari, 'only the youth can fill the leadership vaccum that is apparent in most professions. After your return, endeavour to maintain the momentum and drive to excel, ' he said. Young scholars are selected in a transparent manner and on merit for participation in the event. Previous scholars have earned a good name for Pakistan and every year students from Pakistan are welcomed warmly. The purpose of these annual meeting which began in 1951 is to create knowledge though interaction of talented young scholars with Nobel Laureates. The meetings rotate annually in s u b j e c t s o f P h y s i c s, C h e m i s t r y a n d Medicine/Physiology. Lindau organizers are also appreciative of the gender balance reflected by Pakistan and this year girls outnumber the boys in the final selection. Since 2003, 53 such talented young scholars have availed this opportunity and many of them have henceforth been selected in universities abroad for higher studies in USA, UK, Germany, Australia etc. rd HEC Stands 3 in Weightlifting Championship HEC Weightlifters have won two gold and four silver medals in the Inter Departmental Weightlifting Championship recently held in Lahore. HEC team won third position in the Championship. 6

8 Commission Events Establishing Long-term and Sustainable Research Projects German-Pakistani Research Collaboration Programme Launched The German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) has launched a new scheme entitled German- Pakistani Research Collaboration for providing funding to consolidate scientific exchange between former Pakistani scholarship holders and their German host universities, and to support new joint projects. The major objective of the Programme is to establish long-term and sustainable research projects jointly implemented by German and Pakistani universities in selected research fields with an unequivocal impact on teaching. There should be clear points of reference on current questions regarding Pakistan's economic, ecological and socio-economic development, with a special focus on continuing training and specialisation of young scientists. The topics to be given priority include Water Resources Management, Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency, Agricultural Sciences and Social Sciences. However, research projects from other disciplines are also eligible for funding, if submitted with sound and conclusive concepts which can be expected to have a sustainable impact on the research collaboration between Pakistan and Germany. The call for proposals targets departments and institutes at German universities as well as university faculty with an interest in long-term and sustainable research collaboration with Pakistani partner universities on the specified topics. The funding for a research project is designed for three years, although the initial grant is limited to two years. The maximum funding volume per application is 30,000 in 2011 and 40,000 for the following years. The application deadline is June 24, Detailed information is available at 99 Scholarships Approved under HEC-USAID Merit and Needs based Programme A total of 99 scholarships have been approved under HEC-USAID Merit and Needs based Programme for the academic year This was decided in the meeting of Scholarship Management Committee held at Commission secretariat, Islamabad. Dr. Sohail Naqvi, Executive Director, HEC chaired the m e e t i n g. D r. A r t u r o A c o s t a, t h e representatives of USAID, was also present. The HEC, in partnership with the US Government, initiated the Merit and Needs Based Scholarship Programme aimed to provide assistance to talented but needy students who are unable to start their higher education due to financial disadvantages. These scholarships are available since 2004 in the field of Business Administration and Agriculture at 11 participating universities/ institutions. The selected students are from rural and remote areas across Pakistan and studying at KPK Agriculture University, Peshawar; Balochistan University of Information Technology Engineering and Management S c i e n c e s ( B U I T E M S ), Q u e t t a ; S i n d h Agriculture University(SAU), Tandojam. The offered scholarships cover tuition fee, transportation, books, lodging and incidental costs. Since the Programme's inception in 2004, 1440 needy students have received scholarships in the field of Business Administration and Agriculture while 827 students have completed their education under the programme. The goal of the programme is to award a total of 1,807 through six year life of the project. 7

9 Research Projected Completed under NRPU Data Warehousing Virtualization Framework for Enhanced Business Intelligence Prof. Dr. Syed Mansoor Sarwar, Principal, Punjab University College of Information Technology (PUCIT) has recently completed a project entitled Data Warehouse Virtualization Framework (DWVF), for high availability of data for business intelligence and information delivery. He conducted the research as Principal Investigator, under HEC's National Research Programme for Universities (NRPU). Information plays a critical role in the technological, scientific, agricultural and socioeconomic development of a country. Information is of value if it is accurate and delivered at the right time. Policies pertaining to different sociodevelopment activities such as health, education, agriculture, energy, biotechnology, information technology, water supply, sanitation, and environment are shaped by the right kind of information. A Basic Data Warehouse (DW basic) is used by organizations for (1) information discovery and business intelligence (BI) like O L A P, r e p o r t i n g, a n a l y s i s a n d ( 2 ) implementation of decision support systems for decision-makers, planners and investors. and virtual data model for storing OLTP and OLAP data. The semi-structured virtual data warehouse is a versatile repository for nearly all types of data. The main advantage of using a semi-structured data model is that it can construct and interpret interactive systems and it provides efficient storage and retrieval of information. Ring modelling algorithms allow efficient and smooth data manipulation, retrieval, and analysis operations without performing multi-pass SQL queries and timeconsuming SQL operations. Project Outcomes and Implications The outcome of this research on data warehouse virtualization framework is twofold. Firstly, a software solution named Virtual Data Warehouse (VDW) (prototype) has been developed in the latest 4GL programming tools for Small Medium Enterprises (SMEs), e.g., industries, government organizations, and DATA STORAGE The major problems concerned with DWbasic are (1) high cost: charged by the data warehouse vendors for maintaining and providing fully customized solutions based on the type and size of a business, (2) latency: produced by the data acquisition tools while propagating changes from operational sources to DW repository, (3) basic non-volatile nature of a DW schema: which basic does not provide scalability and flexibility in a DW for changing business requirements. basic SCALABILITY DWVF dramatically reduces data redundancy, time-consuming and technically intense ETL process, and non-volatile behavior of traditional data warehouses. A new data modelling technique, called ring modelling, is introduced which efficiently handles schema evolution with the changing business requirements, increases scalability, and provides a unified, integrated, 8

10 Research academic institutions. VDW software has the exclusive ability to provide generic, scalable, flexible, easy to adopt, low cost, and economically feasible information delivery to almost every organization in Pakistan which is in a need to enhance its business intelligence, productivity, and ROI. However, successful deployment of VDW technology in Pakistan can attract international projects from the organizations in foreign countries. This way, Pakistani people can also contribute in the economic development of the country through foreign exchange earnings. Secondly, the research team was able to publish findings of their research work in various international conferences and journals. Virtual Data Warehouse and Ring Model Performance Results The research team have evaluated Ring model with very large data set (in GBs) and compared its performance with other existing models (1- Relational models i.e., ROLAP, MOLAP; and 2- XML model) available in commercial databases such SQL Server. The performance metrics are data storage size and scalability of the models. The results, as shown in the following figures, indicate that proposed ring model takes less storage space as compared to other models which improves the real-time query execution time and makes operational data highly available. Secondly, the ring model is scalable and can efficiently incorporate schema level and data level changes in less time duration. Barcoding Project at NIBGE Cross the Mark of Sequencing 5000 DNA Barcodes from Insect Species The National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering, Faisalabad has accomplished sequencing of 5000 DNA barcodes from about 1350 important and diverse insect species during the first year of the HEC funded project entitled Sequencing DNA Barcodes of Economically Important Insect Species of Pakistan. The project is being run by Dr. Muhammad Ashfaq, HEC F o r e i g n P r o f e s s o r, i n c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h t h e Biodiversity Institute of Ontario (BIO), University of Guelph, Canada. The project, initiated in April 2010, has produced tangible results with respect to time duration and the outcome. The sequenced species include both the pest and beneficial insects which were collected from various geographical areas of Pakistan during 2010 after the launch of the project. The collaboration has saved thousands of dollars in sequencing and databasing costs as all the sequencing work is being done by BIO, Canada under the umbrella of International Barcode of Life (ibol) project. This project has provided an opportunity to develop a reference library of sequences from native species which will be available through major databases like BOLD, NCBI and DDBJ. The produced sequences are already being used to identify insect species and resolve the disputed species using DNA sequence data. Using DNA barcode data a number of unreported pest species have b e e n i d e n t i f i e d f r o m agricultural fields of Pakistan. The obtained data has identified significant genetic diversities among various insect populations which were previously un-noticed. The data is helping to pinpoint the endemic species and look into the species distribution patterns over time and space. The project has entered in the second year of operation and D r. A s h f a q, P r i n c i p a l Investigator of the project, hope to sequence 10,000 insect barcodes by the end of Upon availability of more funding, Dr. Ashfaq plans to extend the project to barcode more insect species and include other arthropod groups such as spiders and mites to make the project more productive and useful. 9

11 Commission Events CEMB Develops Insect-Resistant Cotton Variety Prof. Dr. Tayyab Husnain and h i s t e a m o f P l a n t Biotechnology scientists at the Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology (CEMB), University of the Punjab have d e v e l o p e d G l y p h o s a t e tolerant Bt cotton. The experiments in the campus have demonstrated that the newly developed genetically modified cotton kills chewing insects as well as tolerate Glyphosate spray upto 1900ml/Acre, which is a b r o a d s p e c t r u m, n o n - selective, post-emergence herbicide, effective on annual and perennial plants. This dose of Glyphosate also kills all types of local weeds. When this cotton line will develop into variety, it will save farmers from purchasing a number of sprays of insecticide and cost of labour for the management of weeds in cotton crop. The project Strengthening of CEMB" is sponsored by H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n Commission. st PERN Participates in 1 International IPv6 Megaconference Pakistan Education and Research Network (PERN), a project of Higher Education st Commission, Pakistan participated in the 1 international IPv6 Megaconference, enabling Pakistani universities and research organisations connected over PERN to initiate IPv6 connectivity for their participation through HEC's Multipoint Conferencing System. As part of the World IPv6 Day on June 8, 2011, the Megaconference provided an opportunity for the video conferencing community to collaborate, test applications and promote the awareness of new technology trends. Megaconference is fundamentally a video-fest where mainly the National Research & Education Networks (NRENs) integrate and collaborate together for research by bridging cross-nren education institutes. Megaconference ran from , to promote video conferencing in general using IPv4, st however, this is 1 time in the last twelve years that Megaconference in conjunction with NREN from all over the world celebrated World IPv6 Day with overall goal to provide an opportunity for people around the world to try out their video conferencing system over IPv6 and to generate a list of those that are able to connect successfully. Some of the countries participated in the Megaconference this year include Australia, Croatia, Finland, Greece, Japan, Pakistan, Portugal, Slovenia and USA. PERN also got an opportunity to collaboratively test the need of international networks and infrastructure ahead of the move from IPv4 to IPv6. This conference along with the necessary testing is vital to ensure the PERN's smooth transition to the next-generation of internet protocol i.e. IPv6, ensuring Pakistani universities and research organization to experience neverending future internet service. This is indeed a great achievement that Pakistan is amongst the few who possesses readiness towards IPv6 infrastructure at least in academic sector. Pakistan Education and Research Network is a national research and education network of Pakistan which connects premiere educational and research institutions of the country. PERN focuses on collaborative research, knowledge sharing, resource sharing, and distance learning by connecting people through the use of Intranet and Internet resources. 10

12 Commission Events Meeting of 13 QECs of Private Universities Dr. A. H. Usmani, Director QEC, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi was the resource person for the w o r k s h o p, w h i c h w a s attended by 25 participants. A workshop on 'Reviewing Self- Assessment Reports' followed by a meeting on p r o b l e m s h a r i n g a n d performance update of Quality Enhancement Cells ( Q E C s ) o f 1 3 p r i v a t e universities was held at HEC Regional Centre, Karachi. Q E C s a r e p r i m a r i l y responsible for implementing the eight criteria and 31 standards of Self-Assessment developed by HEC in order to determine the weaknesses and strengths of programmes. This is helping to achieve uniformity of standards of quality in higher education at national level and achieving international compatibility. D r. J a v a i d R. L a g h a r i, Chairperson HEC, was chief guest in the concluding ceremony. Speaking on the occasion, he commended the private universities for i n t r o d u c i n g t h e H E C developed Quality Assurance Model in their universities. Despite reduction in funding, HEC will continue to strive for g a i n i n g e x c e l l e n c e i n p r o v i s i o n o f q u a l i t y education, he said. SPSS Workshop for Project Employees A three-day in-house training workshop of Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS) was recently organized by the Japanese Needs Based Scholarship Programme, Higher Education Commission, Islamabad. Over 30 employees of the different projects attended the workshop. Prof. Dr. Riaz Hussain Qureshi, Adviser HRD, was the chief guest on the occasion. He appreciated the efforts for providing a tremendous learning opportunity and emphasized the importance of research software and tools in the existing programmes being run in HEC. He also shared his experiences of using statistical tools for researches. Mr. Bashir Khan, Assistant Director (Statistics) Statistical Information Unit (SIU) facilitated the training workshop as resource person. The study modules included Survey Design and Research Processes, Questionnaire Design, Sampling and its types, SPSS Environment, Data Screening, Data Transformation, Reliability Analysis, Exploring Data with Graphs, Parametric Tests (ttests), Analysis of Variance (One-Way ANOVA, Two-Way ANOVA), Non- Parametric Tests (Chi- Square, Mann Whitney U test, and Kruskal Wallis test), Correlation Coefficients on SPSS, Forecasting and Regression (Simple Linear Regression Model, Multiple Linear Regression Model) using SPSS. The workshop methodology included hands-on sessions, interactive lectures and group discussions with applicability of SPSS tools in research. Queries for databases of HEC development Projects were also addressed in the workshop. 11

13 Commission Events STEM Careers Programme HEC Student Participates in Space Camp at US Ibrahim Ahmed, a student of STEM Careers Programme, Higher Education Commission recently attended a week-long non-formal education course, conducted by the US Space and Rocket Centre, Huntsville, Alabama. The US Embassies in Pakistan and India sponsored five students from each country to attend the camp as a single 10-member team as an effort to foster friendship among the two countries. Ibrahim is also a member of Pakistani team going to participate in International Physics Olympiad scheduled for July 9-18, 2011 at Bangkok. SPACE CAMP has become known as one of the premier Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics educational programmes in the United States. More than 500,000 students and adults have attended SPACE CAMP since the programme began in June The team took part in the Advanced Space Academy Course, whose primary focus was on training students in the technical aspects of the Space Shuttle and the International Space Station. They also attended lectures on different aspects of space flight. The team also had trips to Area 51, a physical and leadership training course. They had to climb and jump from 32 feet high pamper poles, climb 50 feet high walls and pass through several other intellectual and teamwork based hurdles. The team was taken to Aviation Challenge, where they were taught to fly F-18 Hornets in the simulators. The team underwent G-Force training in the centrifuge where they experienced up to 3.2 G of force. Another part of the course was the engineering challenge. While sharing his experiences, Ibrahim said We had to build rockets from limited materials and a limited budget. The objective was to carry an egg as a payload and design the rocket as such that the payload was perfectly safe upon landing. We also had to design heat shields that had to insulate an egg from a blow-torch for three minutes. In all of these challenges, our team had a very high success rate. HEC Scholar Wins Social Science Prize in France HEC scholar Amjad Ali pursuing his PhD studies at Burgundy University France has won Social Science Prize in th 17eme jounée de savoir (17 Knowledge Day) recently held i n D i j o n, F r a n c e. T h e competition is organized by an NGO at national level in France. Every year three prizes are conferred to young researchers in three domains, including Social Sciences, Life S c i e n c e s a n d P h y s i c a l Sciences. The prize comprises a shield and 200 cheque. This year, more than 80 researchers of 23 nationalities presented their research work at this forum. There is no doubt that it is a success of HEC and Pakistan, says Ali. 12

14 Commission Events ELT Reforms Phase-II Launched One Month Fellowship for College/University Faculty of Bahawalpur A one-month fellowship p r o g r a m m e o n E n g l i s h Language Teaching (ELT) and English for Academic Purpose (EAP) was recently organized by HEC's English Language Teaching Reforms project at I s l a m i a U n i v e r s i t y, Bahawalpur. Twenty faculty members of nearby colleges b e n e f i t t e d f r o m t h i s programme. Dr. Mamuna G h a n i, C h a i r p e r s o n, Department of English, Mr. Shahzad Karim, Lecturer and Muhammad Arfan Lodhi were the resource persons for the workshop. The course was designed to enable teachers to understand the theory and practice of ELT. The training provided the teachers an opportunity to examine and understand the issues and challenges of ELT in Pakistan so as to bring about change in their teaching practice. The course aimed to enable teachers to understand the critical academic inquiry, o r a l p r e s e n t a t i o n s, communication skills and teaching methodologies. Dr. Muhammad Mukhtar, Vice Chancellor, IUB was the chief guest in the certificate distribution ceremony. Dr. Najeeb Jamal, Dean, Faculty of Arts, Dr. Mamuna Ghani, Chairperson, Department of English, Syed Musa Hassan, Project Manager ELTR, Resource Persons and faculty members of Department of E n g l i s h a t t e n d e d t h e ceremony. Dr. Mamuna briefed the audience about the course objectives and outcome. Dr. Najeeb thanked ELTR Project for providing an enriching opportunity to the faculty members of colleges in Bahawalpur to benefit from the training programme. Syed Musa Hassan asked the participants to make best use of what they have learnt and replicate the activity in their respective colleges. Speaking on the occasion, Dr. M u k h t a r e x p r e s s e d h i s heartfelt gratitude to Higher Education Commission and its dedicated leadership to take up the lead role for uplifting standards of higher education in Pakistan. He reiterated the need of organizing similar activities in future for the faculty members and assured that IUB would come forward to play its role for the cause of higher education. News in Picture Dr. Javaid R. Laghari, Chairperson, Higher Education Commission (HEC) was the chief guest at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Islamabad Campus of Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology. Dr. Mazhar Saeed, Director General, Administration and Coordination, HEC and senior University officials were also present on the occasion. 13

15 Commission Events NCRC Approves Doctor of Physical Therapy Programme The final meeting of the National Curriculum Revision Committee to finalize the curriculum for Physical Therapy at degree level was recently held at HEC Regional Centre, Karachi. Mr. Muhammad Javed Khan Adviser, Academics and informed the committee members about procedure for curriculum review. He said t h a t H E C h a s s e t a standardized format/scheme of studies for semester based undergraduate curriculum. Malik Arshad Mahmood, Director Curriculum, HEC, was also present on the occasion. Mr. Riaz Baig Chughtai, P r i n c i p a l, C o l l e g e o f P h y s i o t h e r a p y, J i n n a h Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), Karachi was the C o n v e n e r. H e b r i e f l y described the history of physiotherapy being taught in the universities across the world. The Committee agreed to adopt five-year programme Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT). The Committee discussed and finalized the curriculum in accordance with the structure, layout and the scheme of studies prepared u n d e r t h e p r o p o s e d standardized format/ scheme of studies for five-year integrated curricula. Final drafts of curricula with credit hours were approved as per HEC criteria. Curriculum Developed for 4-year BS in Home Economics The National Curriculum Revision Committee (NCRC) in Home Economics has finalized curriculum for fouryear BS programme during its recent meeting held at HEC Regional Centre, Lahore. Dr. R. Hakeem, Principal, Rana Liaqat Ali Khan College of Home Economics, Karachi and Mrs. Ghazala Pervez Zaman, Head of Food and N u t r i t i o n D e p a r t m e n t, Government College of Home Economics, Lahore acted as acted as Convener and Secretary of the Committee. Comments received on the draft curriculum from the expatriate Pakistani experts were circulated amongst the committee members of NCRC for consideration. After threed a y d e l i b e r a t i o n s, t h e C o m m i t t e e f i n a l i z e d curriculum for four-year BS in H o m e E c o n o m i c s. M r. Muhammad Javed Khan, Adviser (Academics) HEC and Dr. M. Tahir Ali Shah, Deputy Director (Curriculum) HEC were also present on the occasion. 14

16 Commission Events HEC-NTS Collaboration st 1 TOT Workshop on Effective Test Item Construction Techniques (FPSC) Islamabad, Prof. Dr. Mah Nazir Riaz, Dean, Faculty of Social Sciences, Frontier Women University Peshawar and Prof. Dr. Rukhsana K a u s a r, C h a i r p e r s o n, Department of Applied Psychology, University of the Punjab. T h e H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n C o m m i s s i o n ( H E C ), i n c o l l a b o r a t i o n w i t h t h e National Testing Service (NTS) Pakistan, organized the first-ever Training of Trainers (TOT) Workshop on Effective Test Item Construction T e c h n i q u e s a t t h e Commission Secretariat for the faculty members of higher education institutions (HEIs) of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. The main objective of the workshop was to provide an opportunity to the faculty members to design and construct test items for effective examination and evaluation system. HEC has selected 13 Social Sciences departments under the project Development/ Strengthening of Selected D e p a r t m e n t s o f S o c i a l Sciences and Humanities. The key objectives of the project include faculty development and linkages with other professional organizations. However, this workshop also included faculty members from other than the selected departments. The main topics under d i s c u s s i o n d u r i n g t h e workshop included test planning (identify learning outcomes; preparing a table of specifications; and choosing appropriate test item types); test preparation (constructing good test items; reviewing and editing items according to guidelines; arranging items and groupings; preparing directions for the test and individual items; deciding on method of scoring); and test a n a l y s i s a n d r e v i s i o n ( p e r f o r m i n g t e s t / i t e m a n a l y s i s t o d e t e r m i n e difficulty, discrimination and reliability; deciding to retain, edit or discard items; revising the test etc). The workshop was conducted by renowned educationists including Prof. Dr. Iftikharun-Nisa Hassan, Karakorum International University Gilgit, Prof. Dr. Iffat S. Dar, Expert Psychologist, Federal Public Service Commission Prof. Dr. Riaz Hussain Qureshi, Adviser, Human Resource Development, HEC was the chief guest at the concluding ceremony. He appreciated the efforts of Social Sciences Project team and NTS to initiate innovative a n d u s e f u l a c a d e m i c p r o g r a m m e t a r g e t i n g university faculty members. Since its inception, HEC has undertaken a number of programmes for the benefit of university faculty members, he said. Earlier, in his welcome address, Dr. Haroon Rashid, Director NTS highlighted the background, objectives and importance of the workshop. He was of the view that this activity will help efforts to i m p r o v e c a p a c i t y o f universities' faculty in the area of test item construction. H e a l s o l a u d e d t h e contribution of HEC for bringing about positive and revolutionary changes in higher educational sector of Pakistan. 15

17 Commission Events Mechatronics Engineering Curriculum Revised methodologies evolving the world over. The National Curriculum Revision Committee has revised the curriculum for BSc/BS/BE Mechatronics Engineering. Leading professionals from all over Pakistan attended the three-day Committee meeting recently held at HEC Regional Centre. Mr. Muhammad Javed Khan, Adviser, Academics, HEC informed the members of the c o m m i t t e e a b o u t t h e procedure for review and revision. He emphasized the need for p e r i o d i c r e v i s i o n o f curriculum keeping in view n e w t e c h n i q u e s a n d Dr. Akhtar Nawaz Malik, Dean, College of EME, NUST and Dr. Shaiq A. Haq, Dean, Faculty of Engineering, University of Wah acted as Convener and Secretary of the meeting, respectively. Two groups were formed to look into the two major streams of Mechatronics; Mechanical and Electronics. The course contents developed by these groups were jointly discussed and unanimously approved. NCRC Finalizes Archeology Curriculum curriculum and making it more compatible with international standards, job oriented and in line with the needs of the society. Dr. Tahir Ali Shah, Deputy Director (Curriculum) HEC. The final meeting of the National Curriculum Revision Committee (NCRC) to finalize t h e d r a f t c u r r i c u l u m o f Archaeology for four-year i n t e g r a t e d B S d e g r e e programme was recently held at HEC Regional Centre, Lahore. Mr. Muhammad Javed Khan, Adviser (Academics), HEC Islamabad welcomed the participants and briefed about the obligations of the Higher Education Commission for r e v i e w, r e v i s i o n a n d development of curricula. He informed the committee members that Government is striving hard to enhance the quality of education in public and private sector universities and institutions by developing Dr. Muhammad Nasim Khan, D i r e c t o r, I n s t i t u t e o f A r c h a e o l o g y a n d Anthropology, University of Peshawar acted as the Convener a n d D r. I b r a h i m S h a h, Chairman, Department of Archeology, Hazara University, Mansehra as Secretary of the NCRC. After three days detailed deliberations, NCRC developed final draft of curriculum in Archaeology for four-year BS degree programme. 16

18 Commission Events st 1 Meeting of the Fifth Batch of Quality Enhancement Cells The first meeting of the fifth batch of Quality Enhancement Cells (QECs) was recently held at HEC Regional Centre, Karachi, to discuss the implementation status of HEC's self-assessment model at their respective universities. Parallel to the meeting, a w o r k s h o p f o r s k i l l enhancement of QECs in the field of quality education was also held. The resource person was Dr. Abdul Wahid Usmani, Director QEC, Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi. In his welcome address, Dr. Azam Ali Khwaja, Managing Director, Quality Assurance Agency highlighted the pivotal role of QEC personnel in strengthening the quality assurance processes within the universities. Internal quality assurance mechanism is being managed through QECs that are being established in a phased manner in all public and private universities. From the initial 10 QECs in 2005, the number has increased to the present strength of 84. The model of quality assurance put in place nationally in 740 programmes so far will e n c o m p a s s a l l t h e programmes of institutes of higher learning in the country, thereby helping in improving the programme quality and enhanced student learning, he said. Dr. A. Q. K. Rajput, Vice C h a n c e l l o r, M e h r a n University of Engineering and S c i e n c e T e c h n o l o g y, Jamshoro, presided over the closing session. In his address, he emphasized the importance of quality in higher learning and shared his thoughts with regard to quality enhancement practices in his University. He lauded the efforts of HEC for introducing the Quality Assurance Model in the country. Turnitin Demonstration at UVAS through Video Conference The Quality Enhancement Cell (QEC), University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) in collaboration with the Quality Assurance Division, HEC recently organized a video conference session on plagiarism detection programme Turnitin. followed by a question-answer session. The session was coordinated by Dr. Nasim Ahmad, Dean, University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (Focal Person for Turnitin in UVAS) and Dr. Uzma Farid Durrani, Deputy Director, Quality Enhancement Cell, UVAS In order to discourage plagiarism and monitor the quality of research, HEC has provided the universities with access to Turnitin. The training was carried out by Mr. Muneer Ahmed, Deputy Director, Quality Assurance, HEC. One faculty member from each academic department/institute attended the training The faculty members were also provided guiding material about plagiarism and internet links with Turnitin video tutorials. The participants, who termed Turnitin a useful tool to promote the originality and transparency of scientific write up, will train their departmental colleagues for using this programme. 17

19 Commission Events HEC-BC Collaboration Seminar on Talented Research Exchange Programme A dissemination seminar on Talented Researcher Exchange Programme (TRXP) was recently organized by the Higher Education Commission in continuation of the activity held in Windsor-UK. The British Council (BC) Pakistan and HEC have come together to enhance the indigenous research culture in Pakistan. As a first step, British Council organized a workshop in United Kingdom in February 2010 for early stage researchers, in order to provide them a development opportunity in inter-cultural communication, project management for sustainable international collaboration, tips and techniques in bidding for external sources of funding, and strategic skills. Thirteen participants were nominated to attend the workshop while 10 were nominated for the exposure visit across Pakistan. HEC planned to use the participants of Windsor chapter as Master Trainers (MTs) and proceed with cascading workshops in higher education institutions across Pakistan. The participants of the workshop presented a comprehensive action plan, identifying stakeholders/target group, time and scope. Dr. Syed Mahmood Raza, Adviser (Quality Assurance and Learning Innovation) HEC was the Guest of Honour in the recent seminar. Applauding the efforts of coordinators and participants, he stressed the need to develop research culture in the country. Ms. Noor Amna Malik, Director General (Learning Innovation) HEC said that the purpose of TRXP was to establish the networks and not just winning grants for research. Ms. Nishat Riaz represented the British Council. Workshop on Audit and Financial Management Skills at Lasbela University The Learning Innovation Division, HEC recently conducted a workshop on Audit and Financial Management Skills at Lasbela University of Agriculture, Water and Marine Sciences, Uthal. The workshop was exclusively designed for the universities of Balochistan province. A total of 16 participants of Audit and Finance departments from Balochistan universities attended the workshop. Mr. Mehfooz Ali Khan, Accountant General of Balochistan and Mr. Sajid Baloch, Audit Expert, PIFRA (Project to Improve Financial Reporting and Auditing) Quetta were the resource persons. The five-day training mainly covered New Accounting Model (NAM) of the Government of P a k i s t a n, T r e a s u r y R u l e s, Establishment of Treasuries, P e n s i o n, I n t e r n a l c o n t r o l framework, Public Finance, Concept of Government Pre-Audit (And accounting) and Post Audit Compilation of Governmental a c c o u n t s, A u d i t E v i d e n c e, Performance Audit (Efficiency, Effectiveness and Economy), PPRA and PIFRA rules, etc. The participants were provided an opportunity to get in-depth skill enhancement orientation in audit and financial management fields. The training is expected to help them become effective auditors and financial experts and they would handle financial matters in a better way. 18

20 Commission Events th 5 Meeting of National Committee on Examination System The fifth meeting of the National Committee on Examination System was recently held at Learning Innovation Division, Higher Education Commission. The main purpose of the meeting was to address Semester/ Grading System of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) and put forward recommendations for smooth and standardized functioning. Distinguished members from all over Pakistan were invited to share their expertise and knowledge for the quality e n h a n c e m e n t a n d standardization in the HEIs. The meeting advised on all issues, relevant to the adaption of semester and examination system, faced by the HEIs. Prior to this meeting, feedback from all HEIs was taken, based on which implementation strategies of semester and examination system were discussed. Dr. Sohail Naqvi presided over the meeting as NCES Chairperson. The Committee recommended constitution of three sub committees to address the areas for policy matters for semester system. The sub-committees will meet every fourth week to share the progress and working on assigned areas. ITE Course Concludes at NED University, Karachi The Incorporating Technology in Education (ITE) training course was recently held at the N E D U n i v e r s i t y o f Engineering and Technology, Karachi under the auspices of the National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE) Phase-II. Dr. Syed Mahmood Raza, Adviser (Quality Assurance and Learning Innovation) and Call for Papers Ms. Noor Amna Malik, Director General (Learning Innovation) represented HEC while Dr. Muzaffar Mahmood, Pro Vice Chancellor, NED UET, was the chief guest on the occasion. Dr. Sohail Abdul Sattar, ITE Coordinator, briefed the p a r t i c i p a n t s a b o u t t h e objectives of the programme and highlighted its main achievements. A team of qualified resource persons trained 25 faculty members. Dr. Mahmood thanked HEC for extending support in organizing a productive training for the faculty members. So far, 290 faculty members have been trained under the ITE component. The Department of Political Science, University of Peshawar, in collaboration with Hanns Seidel Foundation, Islamabad is organizing an Annual International Conference on The Dynamics of Change in Conflict Societies: Pakhtun Region in Perspective from November 14-15, The deadline for abstracts is July 31, After professional reviewing of the abstracts, selected participants will be informed by August 31, Complete papers are required by October 15, Travel and accommodation expenses of invited speakers of the conference will be covered and local hospitality will be provided. Papers presented in the conference will be considered for publication in an edited book. Please send your abstracts (not more than 300 words) to Dr. Ayub Jan at [email protected]. Conference Organizer Prof. Dr. Taj Moharram Khan, Department of Political Science, University of Peshawar Ph: , [email protected] 19

21 Commission Events NAHE Holds PCEPT at UVAS, UET Lahore The National Academy of Higher Education (NAHE) recently organized the one-month Professional Competency Enhancement Programme for Teachers (PCEPT) at the University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore and University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore. Training of teachers under PCEPT was based on seven modules. All modules covered different aspects about teaching and learning to enrich professional, communication and research skills of the participants. At UET, 28 faculty members attended the programme, including 21 from Lahore campus and seven from UET Gujranwala and Faisalabad campuses. Thirty-two faculty members attended the progamme at UVAS. Lt. Gen. (R) Muhammad Akram Khan, Vice- Chancellor, UET was the chief guest in the closing ceremony while Ms. Noor Amna Malik, Director General, Learning Innovation Division was the guest of honour. Ms. Malik was the chief guest in the closing ceremony at UVAS. Dr. Muhammad Nawaz, Vice Chancellor, UVAS was also present on the occasion. HEC Scholarships for Students of Balochistan & FATA Applications are invited for the award of scholarships under the project 'Provision of Higher Education Opportunities for the Students of Balochistan and FATA' for four-year undergraduate and two-year postgraduate programmes. Eligibility Criteria: Domicile : Balochistan or FATA Age : Maximum 22 years as on July 18, 2011 for undergraduate programme Academic Qualification: (a) For undergraduates: FA/FSc/ICom/A-Level or equivalent with minimum 60 per cent marks (b) For postgraduates: BA/BSc or equivalent in any discipline with minimum 45 per cent marks How to Apply: Scholarship details and application forms may be downloaded from Closing Date of Application: Application forms completed in all respect along with required documents should be sent on the following address by the registered post or courier service till July 18, 2011 (during office hours). Incomplete applications or applications received after due date will not be entertained. Waqas Ahmed Chaudhry Project Director, Balochistan & FATA Scholarship Programme Higher Education Commission, Sector H-9, Islamabad Ph # & , [email protected] 20

22 Commission Events 21

23 University News Rector NUST Leads Session in Talloires Network Conference Engr. Muhammad Asghar, Rector, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad was invited to attend 2011 Talloires Network Global Leaders Conference recently held in Madrid, Spain. The Rector led a concurrent session entitled Response of Universities to Disasters - A NUST Perspective, wherein he highlighted the role of Pakistani universities in general and the contribution of NUST in particular in providing relief to the affectees of 2005 earthquake and unprecedented floods of He also described NUST efforts to aid two million internally displaced people of Swat before a major military operation against the terrorists. While giving an overview of how NUST utlilises its resources for common well being, the Rector presented a broad framework for contribution to disaster management and community service. He also distributed a pamphlet on Role of University and Community in Disaster Management - A NUST Perspective among the participants. Khurram Shahzad Completes PhD Mr. Khurram Shahzad has completed PhD in Management Sciences with specialization in Human Resource Management from Mohammad Ali Jinnah University, Islamabad. He is currently the Head of Department at Riphah School of Leadership, Riphah International University, Islamabad. NUST Policy Dialogue on Pakistan-from Food Bowl to Dust Bowl The School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (SCEE), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) in collaboration with UNESCO organized a Policy Dialogue on Pakistan-From Food Bowl to Dust Bowl. The policy briefing was a follow-up of the three-day international workshop on Education for Managing Hydrological Extremes and Related Geo-hazards held at NUST in January this year. The day-long Dialogue was attended by representatives from different government departments including Planning Commission. Speaking on the occasion, the Rector said that the Dialogue would serve as a stepping stone in devising water management techniques. He expressed his gratitude over UNESCO-NUST collaborative efforts in finding means to address looming water scarcity issue. Dr. Shahbaz Khan, Chief of Section on Sustainable Water Resources Development and Management, UNESCO, France, presented a comprehensive comparative analysis of Pakistan's water problems. He pinpointed the four fundamental waterrelated challenges facing the country including its geo-political vulnerability to rapid population increase and climate change. He laid great emphasis on efficient water management through technological advancement in this vital sector. Dr. Kozue Kay Nagata, Director UNESCO, Pakistan chapter, stressed the need for taking urgent steps with regard to natural disaster management in Pakistan. She said that though natural disasters are beyond human control, the risk factor can be reduced by means of utilising the immense potential of science and technology. 22

24 University News Bahria Business Club Holds BizIgnition The Bahria Business Club (BBC), a student body under the Department of Management Sciences, Bahria University, Islamabad recently held a business gala BizIgnition. The purpose of the event was to help students display their talent and help polish their skills through a set of different planned activities. The event was planned and executed by Ms. Alina Rana, President BBC and Mr. Shahid Haq, Faculty Adviser. The gala comprised a multiple activities including Biz-Plan (Business Plan Competition), Case Crack (Case Study Competition), Pro Launch (Product/Service Launch Campaign Competition), Encyclomind (Business Quiz Competition) and Presentations by Corporate Representatives and Entrepreneurs. Some 35 teams from more than eight universities participated in the competition. These included Arid Agriculture University, International Islamic University, COMSATS Institute of Information T e c h n o l o g y, Q u a i d - i - A z a m U n i v e r s i t y, Mohammad Ali Jinnah University, Preston University, Fatima Jinnah Women University, University of Engineering and Technology, National University of Sciences and Technology and Air University. Different workshops were organized on the occasion, which mostly focused on Case Analysis, Entrepreneurship, Product Launch and Communications, etc. PEC Delegation Visits Northern Cyprus, Turkey A Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) team, comprising university faculty, visited Northern Cyprus. Purpose of the visit was to gauge academic quality standards at European University of Lefke, Northern Cyprus for awarding accreditation to its engineering programmes. The delegation headed by Dr. Kamal Athar, C h a i r m a n, D e p a r t m e n t E l e c t r i c a l Engineering, Air University, Islamabad comprised Dr. Younas Javed, Associate Dean, College of Electrical and Mechanical Engineering, NUST, Dr. Abdul Sattar Shakir, Dean, Department of Civil Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology, Lahore, Dr. Dost Ali Khowaja, Chairman, Department of Architectural Engineering, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro and Dr. Nasir M a h m o o d, A d d i t i o n a l R e g i s t r a r (Accreditation) PEC. The team visited Departments of Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Department of Computer Engineering, Department of Civil Engineering and the Department of Architecture. All departments have their own buildings with well-equipped laboratories and airy, well-lit classrooms. The Campus has a combined student population of around 5000 with many international students from various countries and has all the facilities of a modern campus including auditoriums, library, gymnasiums, dormitories, bookstore, bank, convenient stores, copying centers, sports arenas, etc. The faculty includes people from various national backgrounds and the University has an international character. This visit was followed by a meeting with o f f i c i a l s o f M U D E K, E n g i n e e r i n g programmes evaluation and accreditation organization of Turkey in Istanbul, Turkey. Matters of mutual interest and possible avenues of cooperation were discussed in the meeting. 23

25 University News nd 2 Meeting of Industry-Academia Linkage at UET Taxila The second meeting on IndustryAcademia Linkage recently held at the University of Engineering and Technology, Taxila was attended by representatives of different faculties and future industrial partners. The first meeting was held in November In his opening remarks, Dr. Muhammad Abbas Choudhary, Vice Chancellor, UET underlined the need and benefits of such linkages to both the industry and academia. Dr. Riffat Asim Pasha from Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Dr. Aamir Hanif from Electrical and Electronics Engineering, Dr. Imran Hafeez from Civil and Environmental Engineering and Engr. Asjad Saleem from Computer, Software and Telecom Engineering made presentations on progress made so far. It was decided to hold a one-day seminar at UET in collaboration with National Highways Authority (NHA) by inviting all stakeholders with reference to environmental issues related to crusher plants. FECTO Cement representative offered the testing facilities of cement and coal for UET's researchers. NESPAK, NHA, Margalla Crushers and HMC representatives promised s u p p o r t f o r t h e c o n c e p t o f D e s i g n House/Research Innovation and Technological Development through synergy by defining charter and clear road map. The participants agreed that an office of Research Innovation and Technological Development will be established and will be functional before the third meeting. PMO offered 10 fellows to be inducted in UET for full-time MS/PhD programme. R e c o m m e n d a t i o n s i n c l u d e s h o r t training/course/workshop on crusher plants, working on the idea of venture capital as part of technology park, having automated databased test centres, focus on training of trainers, induction of fulltime researchers, and start of Master's programme in Utility Regulation. It was decided to have participation of industrial personnel for short courses at UET through Training Need Assessment, have a confidential cell for proprietary research without compromising the HEC policy/conditions, offer Vacuum Sciences PGD (one-year) as a separate programme, and creation of Industrial Liaison Office. UK Varsity Offers UHS Research Collaboration The Middlesex University, UK has offered research collaboration to the University of Health Sciences (UHS), Lahore. The offer was made during a recent meeting of Prof. Waqar Ahmad, Deputy Vice Chancellor, Middlesex University and Prof. Malik Hussain Mubashar, Vice Chancellor, UHS during former's visit to Lahore. completed their education at Middlesex University in the last few years. He also apprised the meeting participants about the academic activities being carried out at the Middlesex University. Dr. Mubashar briefed the visiting delegation about various departments, on-going academic, research and PhD programmes. Prof. Ahmad said the Middlesex University valued the relations and mutual collaboration with varsities of other countries. He said that a large number of Pakistani students had He said that there was a huge potential of collaboration in Bio-Medical Engineering, Nursing and Allied Health Sciences besides sharing expertise in Library Management. 24

26 University News SALU Seminar on Youth Entrepreneurship Dr. Mohammad Yousuf Khushk, Director, Students Affairs, SALU underlined the need for promotion of training skills for the youth, so they may earn without any dependency on government jobs or private sector. Mr. Saleem Ahmed Siddiqui, Deputy Secretary, Sports and Youth Affairs Department, said that such seminars and workshops provide information to the students regarding marketing strategy, plan of operation, forecasted financial statements, loan or investment proposals. A seminar on Youth Entrepreneurship was organized by the Directorate of Students Affairs, Shah Abdul Latif University (SALU), Khairpur in collaboration with the Sports and Youth Affairs Department, Government of Sindh and Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA). Over 100 students of Departments of Commerce, Business Administration, Economics, Public Administration and Education attended the seminar, wherein they were trained to establish their own small businesses. Mr. Israr Hussain Bhatti from SMEDA presented salient features regarding priority sectors includes dairy and agro processing, gems and jewelry, marble and granite, light engineering fans and surgical instruments, sports goods, furniture and fisheries. Student Service Centre Dr. Nilofer Shaikh, Vice Chancellor, Shah Abdul Latif University, Khairpur recently inaugurated the Student Service Centre at the University. The Centre has been established by the Higher Education Commission at a cost of Rs million. The Centre has an internet cafe, gymnasium, medical dispensary, reading hall, bookshop, general store, cafeteria and a career counseling hall. Research Shows Use of Naswar May Lead to Cancer A research study by the Department of Pharmacy, University of Peshawar has revealed that the use of smokeless tobacco product Naswar is a potential threat in the spread of cancer. The researchers have urged the government to make proper regulations to avoid its adverse effects. The study was conducted by the faculty members of the Department, Mr. Zakiullah, Mr. Muhammad Saeed and Mr. Naveed Muhammad on the assessment of potential toxicity of Naswar sold in Pakistani market. They took a total of 30 Pakistani brands of Naswar, studied its effect on more than 200 individuals and checked it for a variety of toxic constituents and carcinogens such as cadmium, arsenic, lead and other carcinogenic metals, nitrite and nitrate and nicotine. The results of the study recorded a lifetime cancer risk from cadmium and lead which is a matter of great concern. Greater incidence of cancer of the oral cavity and oesophagus were reported in individuals using Naswar as well in the study. It is also pertinent to note that oral cancer attributable to use of Naswar are about 50 per cent of the total oral cancer cases reported in Pakistan. Similarly, the consumption of Naswar has been correlated with higher incidence of peptic ulcer disease. The results show that awareness should be raised in the general public regarding the use of Naswar and its harmful effect. The study also shows that the production, packaging, sale and consumption of Naswar should be regulated so as to protect the public from the health hazards associated with its consumption. 25

27 University News KPK Doubles GIKI Scholarships Barrister Masood Kausar, Governor, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has said that the number of scholarships has been doubled for the deserving students of the province, studying at Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute (GIKI) of Engineering, Science and Technology. The number of scholarship has been increased from 10 to th 20, said the Governor while addressing the 15 convocation of the Institute, wherein he awarded gold medals and conferred degrees on 297 BS and nine MS graduates as well as 13 PhD scholars. The total number of scholars who have successfully completed PhD degree from GIKI has reached 35. The first PhD degree was awarded in Naeemullah Khan and Muhammad Fahad Waseem bagged the Ghulam Ishaq Khan medal and the Quaid-i- Azam medal, respectively for distinction in academics and overall best performance during their studies in the Institute. ISO Certification for Faculty of Mechanical Engineering The Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute (GIKI) of Engineering Sciences and Technology is now certified for ISO 9001:2008. The certification is accredited by the Direct Assessment Services (DAS) and the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). The Faculty underwent one-year evaluation process to win the certification. It included quality management s y s t e m d e v e l o p m e n t, m a n a g e m e n t s y s t e m documentation review, pre-audit, initial assessment and clearance of non-conformances. The process culminated in a comprehensive two-day registration audit by the DAS. The certification of compliance with ISO 9001:2008 recognizes that the policies, practices and procedures of the Faculty ensure consistent quality in the services and education being provided to the students. A ceremony was held to recognize the efforts of all the employees whose quality of work contributed in attaining the certification. Mr. Jehangir Bashar, Rector, GIKI was the chief guest. Dr. Javed A. Chattha, Dean, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering was also present on the occasion. World Environment Day at FUUAST Karachi A one-day seminar on World Environment Day was organized by the Department of Botany and Environmental Science, Federal Urdu University of Arts, Science and Technology (FUUAST), Karachi. Vice Admiral (R) Mohammad Shafi, Chairman Port Bin Qasim Authority was the chief guest while Dr. Mubeen Ahmed Aziz, Director, Geo Link (Pvt.) Ltd, Australia /Pakistan was the Guest of Honour. These organizations supported FUUAST PhD scholars by providing travelling facilities and scholarships. On the occasion, final research reports were given to both supporting organizations. The event was chaired by Prof. Dr. Muhammad Qaiser, Vice Chancellor, FUUAST. Dr. Moinuddin Ahmed, Foreign Professor, stressed the need to develop and strengthen the nexus of industry and university research workers to ensure quality research. He said that purpose of this event was to aware students and general public about the importance of Environment and underline the need to increase cooperation between industry and universities. Ms. Kanwal Nazim, Mr. Mohammad Uzair Khan and Dr. Arif Zubair presented their research related to environment. 26

28 University News Software Exhibition at IIU Dr. Gulzar Ahmed Khawaja, Director General, International Islamic University, Islamabad (IIUI) has said that our students have the ability to compete with the students of developed countries and they are capable enough to change the future of Pakistan. He said this while speaking at the Research and Commercial Software Exhibition organized by the Department of Computer Science, IIUI in collaboration with the Higher Education Commission. He stressed on the significance of research for social and economic growth of the country. Earlier, in his welcome address, Dr. M. Sher, Chairman, Department of Computer Science, briefed the audience about Department's efforts in the field of research and software development. He said this year the Department has a remarkable number of publications in national and international HEC recognized journals. He also appreciated the efforts of his team members to guide and assist the students to produce international level software. Dr. Riaz Ahmed, Dean, Faculty of Basic and Applied Sciences, congratulated the Department for organizing a healthy and constructive activity. Ms Aayesha Ikram, Director (Media) HEC and Mr. Muhammad Naveed, Project Manager, HEC were also present on the occasion. During the exhibition, students displayed research projects on (BS Projects) Biometric Personal Identification System, Virtual Class Room, Real Time Object Tracking System, Urdu Language Teacher, Linkage Analysis System, Augmented Reality, Sems-School Entry/ Exit Management System, Virtual Hair Style (MS Projects) Distributed Beamforming in Wireless Sensor Networks, Ontology Based Semantic Search in Holy Quran, Hierarchal Hash Based Secure Network File System File System for Wireless Networks, Trajectory Guided Hand Gesture Recognition for Urdu Sign Language, Human Behaviour Classification in Crowd, Snatch Detection in Videos (PhD Research) Data Warehousing. UDL Workshop for Farmers T h e U n i v e r s i t y D i a g n o s t i c Laboratory (UDL), University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS), Lahore recently organized a o n e - d a y w o r k s h o p o n S t a k e h o l d e r s V i s i o n f o r Improvement of Quality Diagnosis. The purpose of this session with farmers was to provide more facilities to stakeholders which ultimately will strengthen the livestock and poultry sector of the c o u n t r y. F a r m e r s f r o m surroundings of Lahore attended the workshop. Dr. Tahir Yaqub, Acting Director, UDL presented an overview of the Laboratory, which provides disease diagnosis facility for more than 40 species of animals. The Laboratory started with only few samples per month and with very limited scope of tests but now it is processing the examination over more than 1000 samples per month, he said. Dr. Arfan Ahmad, Lecturer, UDL delivered a lecture to share some technical information with poultry farmers. He described a road map how to take preventive measure while starting a new poultry farm and remedial measure in case while any problem occurs at poultry farm. He actively replied to the queries of farmers, who were very much satisfied. Speaking to farmers in the closing session, Dr. Muhammad Nawaz, Vice Chancellor, UVAS said that the University is committed to serve students, researchers, stakeholders and even common man. 27

29 University News KIU Seminar on Media's Role in National Development Dr. Najma Najam, Vice C h a n c e l l o r, K a r a k u r a m International University (KIU) Gilgit has said that the people who want to bring change in the society need to change themselves first. She was addressing a seminar on Media's Role in National Development organized by the Department of Mass Communication. The seminar was attended by faculty members and students of media. Reporters of d i f f e r e n t c h a n n e l s a n d newspapers from Lahore as well as local media were also present on the occasion. Dr. Najam said that media has a key role to play in the development of our society. There is, no doubt, freedom of expression in our country but one must understand the responsibilities beside this freedom. Our media needs to focus on its moral standards to make self-improvement, she said. Mr. Saadat Ali Mujahid, Chief Executive of KPN and FM 99, also expressed his views and s u g g e s t e d t o a r r a n g e discussion programmes among politicians, reporters and bureaucrats to provide an opportunity to understand each other and to move in the right direction to build the nation. He said that local m e d i a h a s p l a y e d a n important role to make people of Gilgit-Baltistan aware of t h e i r r i g h t s a n d responsibilities. Mr. Mansoor Malik, President, Lahore Education Reporters Association, stressed the significance of media's role in solving problems of the people. Another senior reporter, Mr. Imdad Hussain B h a t t i s a i d t h a t, l i k e democracy, media also needs to flourish towards glory and pride. Small issues must be kept aside in the best national interest, he said. Dr. Shafique J a l l a n d h r y, C h a i r m a n, D e p a r t m e n t o f M a s s Communication also spoke on the occasion. GIKI, Iraqi Varsities to Launch Joint Ventures Dr. Rushdi Mahmood Rashid, I r a q ' s A m b a s s a d o r t o Pakistan, has said that the Iraqi universities and Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute (GIKI) of Engineering, Sciences and Technology would launch joint ventures in different disciplines of engineering. Dr Rashid, who headed a delegation to GIKI recently, held wide-ranging talks with Mr. Jehangir Bashar, Rector GIKI, Dr. Shaukat Hameed Khan, Executive Director, Society for Promotion of Engineering Sciences and Technology in Pakistan (SOPREST), Dr. Fazal Ahmad K h a l i d, P r o - R e c t o r (Academic), Mr. Ahmad Shamsul Huda, Pro-Rector (Admin and Finance) and Deans of the faculties. Briefing the delegation, Mr. Bashar said that admissions in the Institute are granted on merit without regional or discretionary quotas. Dr. Fazal Ahmad Khalid spoke about t h e i n t e r n a t i o n a l collaboration, interaction with d i f f e r e n t E u r o p e a n universities and joint research projects. Dr. Rashid said that officials of the Iraqi Ministry of Science and technology would visit GIKI. The ambassador visited the research laboratories and took great interest in the continued research activities. 28

30 University News Efficient Use of Natural Resources Indispensable: Dr. Mubarakmand Renowned scientist Dr. Samar Mubarakmand has said that efficient use of the abundant coal reserves in Pakistan alone can guarantee solution to the power woes of the country. He was of the view that coal can easily be transformed into gas and then electricity which would be far cheaper than the rental power. Dr. Mubarakmand expressed these views while delivering a lecture at National University of Sciences and Technology. NUST Science Society organised the event under its programme Meet the Scientist and a large number of students and academia attended the lecture. Pakistan badly needs a contribution from engineers and scientists to develop and refine the processes for conversion of coal gas to diesel and separation of copper, gold, silver and cobalt from ores through efficient means, he said. It is fortunate for a nation like us to have educated and trained manpower that could be diverted towards exploration of natural resources for the betterment of the country`s economy, he added. RIMS Hold Workshop on Media Management at Sihala Police College c o m m u n i c a t i o n s k i l l s, conducting press conference for electronic and print media, interviewing skills, visual communication while facing c a m e r a, m e d i a e t h i c s, d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g, a n d evaluation of strategies while dealing with media. Riphah Institute of Media Sciences, Riphah International University organized a fiveday intensive workshop Media Management and Relations at Sihala Police College for the participants of rd 3 Junior Command Course. The workshop focused on providing an overview of media relations between Police Department and the M e d i a C o m m u n i t y. I t imparted hands-on training on how to face print, electronic and online media along with developing effective healthy relations. It also included e x i s t i n g a n d e m e r g i n g technologies like new cyber and social media techniques for law enforcement agencies and how to deal with the issues of crisis management. The participants were trained on conceptual framework, with an emphasis on the practical application of Renowned experts from the media industry were invited to lecture on different aspects of m e d i a r e l a t i o n s a n d management. Last day of the workshop included a Lecture by Dr. Anis Ahmed, Vice Chancellor, R i p h a h I n t e r n a t i o n a l University on Sanctity of Words followed by certificate distribution ceremony. Mr. Mansoor Nasir, Director RIMS and Mr. Muhammad Tahir, Commandant, Sihala Police College were also present on the occasion. 29

31 University News PIEAS Researchers Working on Cancer Therapy A research group at the P a k i s t a n I n s t i t u t e o f Engineering and Management Sciences (PIEAS) is working on the cancer therapy using l a s e r l i g h t k n o w n a s photodynamic therapy. I n t h i s t h e r a p y, t w o i n d i v i d u a l l y n o n - t o x i c components (photosensitizers and laser light of low energy) are brought together to cause harmful effects on cells and tissues in the presence of oxygen. The group is working on the basic research as well as on clinical application. One of the paper on basic research published in Laser Physics Letter in 2009, entitled In v i t r o s t u d y o f 5 - aminolevulinic acid-based photodynamic therapy for apoptosis in human cervical HeLa cell line by M. Atif, S. Firdous, A. Khurshid, L. Noreen, S. S. Z. Zaidi and M. Ikram, has also been given Best Research Paper Award for the year under HEC's O u t s t a n d i n g R e s e a r c h Awards Series. Control and Signal Processing Research Group's Excellent Research Output Since 2003, Control and Signal Processing Research Group is actively conducting research in control systems and signal processing to resolve domestic problems with advance research methodologies. including Fuel Cell systems and Underground Coal gasification. Apart from these application areas, some of the members are actively working on theoretical development in sliding mode control. The group is led by Dr. Aamer Iqbal Bhatti, Professor at Muhammad Ali Jinnah University, Islamabad. A group of three faculty members and 20 plus graduate students from various local industries, NUST, CASE, MAJU, and CIIT are actively participating in the research activity. The focus of the research activity is Aerospace Control, Automotive Control and Fault Diagnosis, Robotics, Alternate energy resources In the last couple of years, CASPR is able to publish its valuable research work in international level journals. One of the papers has also been awarded HEC's outstanding research award Besides educational activity, CASPR has also won research funding to conduct research project in automotive fault diagnostics and radar development. Dr. Ashfaq Wins FUIW Award 2010 Prof. Dr. Muhammad Ashfaq, Dean, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF) has won a prestigious award by the Federation of the Universities of the Islamic World (FUIW) for the year Dr. Ashfaq, a stalwart in the field of Integrated Pest Management and Agro-based Cottage Industries, has n u m e r o u s d i s t i n c t achievements to his credit. He is also recipient of Tamgha-i- Imtiaz from Government of Pakistan and Quaid-e-Azam Gold Medal. Author of 14 books and more than 250 research articles, Dr. Ashfaq has been recognized as a legend in the domain of Agri. Entomology. 30

32 University News HEC Publishes Book on 'Labour Management Relations in Islam' A book on Labour Management Relations in Islam has been published by the Higher Education Commission (HEC). Useful for civil servants, advocates, law students and general public, the book provides detailed analysis of labour laws in Pakistan in the context of the Holy Quran and Hadith. The book written by Mr. Shahzad Langah, an official of the Social Security Unit, Ministry of Labour and Manpower, discusses main issues relating to labour such as working conditions, work environment, workplace terms of employment, health and safety and welfare of the working class as covered under various labour welfare laws of the country. Mr. Shahzad Langah The book carrying detailed discussion and cataloguing of labour laws applicable in Pakistan will be handy for legal practitioners and those interested in carrying out research in the field of labour laws. It will be a useful guide also for investors and entrepreneurs. Labour management relations in Islam plays vital role for the benefit of the employer and employee, establishing and regulating their relations, says Mr. Langah. The labour management relations provide help to improve the term of employment conditions of labour, regulating favourable salary structure for the employees, providing better facilities to the workers, removing the genuine grievances in quick amicable settlement of differences or disputes arising between employee and employer. DAWN TV s Reporter at Campus Students of 30 Universities Participates in Talk Show The Centre for Civic Education, Pakistan, in collaboration with the Higher Education Commission (HEC) and Dawn TV recorded Urdu television talk show Reporter at Campus: Mera Tusawwar e Pakistan(My Concept of Pakistan) at university campuses in Karachi, Quetta, Lahore, Abbottabad, Mirpur and Islamabad. The recorded youth talk shows were broadcast by Dawn TV. The panelists included renowned educationists including Dr. Masoom Yasinzai, Vice Chancellor Quaid-i-Azam University, Dr. Muhammad Nizamuddin, Vice Chancellor, University of Gujrat, Dr. Syed Jaffer Ahmed, Director, Pakistan Study Centre, University of Karachi, Dr. Sarfraz Khan, Director, Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, Dr. Rasul Bakhsh Rais, Lahore University of Management Sciences, and Dr. Muhammad Nasir, University of Balochistan, Quetta. Mr. Arshad Sharif, Bureau Chief, Dawn TV, Islamabad hosted the programmes. The participating included university students belonging to 30 higher education institutions of the country, who had the opportunity to discuss various issues related to good governance, rule of law, rising extremism, violence, active citizenship, university community linkages, relevance of university curriculum with the socio-economic problems of Pakistan etc. The purpose of this special television series was to talk directly to the university students to find out their vision of Pakistan and how they would be contributing towards a democratic, peaceful and pluralist Pakistan. 31

33 University News University of Lahore, IADSR Hold Conference on Dentistry The University of Lahore and Institute of Advanced Dental S c i e n c e s a n d R e s e a r c h (IADSR) recently organized an international conference on Dentistry in the Era of Globalization: Education, Research and Oral Health Care. The event, sponsored by HEC and supported by the South East Asia Association f o r D e n t a l E d u c a t i o n, comprised a seminar, a symposium, three scientific sessions and six workshops. The seminar was presided over by Prof. Dr. Sibtul Husnain, President, PMDC and was addressed by Prof. M. H. Qazi, Prof. Tariq Zaman Ahmad, Prof. Toh Choii Gait, Dr. Gohar Wajid, Dr. Alan Mighell, Dr. Sibtul Husnain and Dr. Ayyaz Ali Khan. Speakers reviewed the status of dental education in Pakistan and stressed the need to promote uniformity and assure quality of dental education. Speakers also emphasized on the need to develop a national curriculum that is innovative, of global standard and includes teaching/learning m e t h o d o l o g i e s a n d technologies to develop soft skills and impart necessary knowledge to students. The symposium was attended by deans, principals and faculty members of dental institutes from all over the country. The theme was to develop a policy consensus on dental education system. PMDC and HEC were asked to take lead in developing a uniform dental education system in Pakistan. It was recommended to e s t a b l i s h a N a t i o n a l Committee to deal with issues o f m a n a g e m e n t a n d g o v e r n a n c e o f d e n t a l curriculum Formation of an independent Dental Council was also recommended. LCWU Lecture on Tourism in Pakistan Apart from reading course books, students should read autobiographical essays of great personalities, said Mr. Maqsood Ahmed Chughtai during an interactive session at the Department of Mass Communication, Lahore College for Women University, Lahore. He narrated the history of Scouts Association in the international arena and gave a brief introduction of the Scouts Association. He shared his experience of visits to more than 40 different countries. He underlined the importance of tourism in Pakistan and the need for youth to realize the geographical significance and scenic beauty of Pakistan. Mr. Chughtai explained how the students of Mass Communication may learn from traveling to different places and how they may spread the message of peace and tranquility in the society. He also offered the students membership of Girl Guides Association and Scouts Association while explaining the benefits of working for the society as volunteers. The lecture was followed by a question-answer session. Dr. Anjum Zia, Chairperson, Department of Mass Communication, also spoke on the occasion. 32

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