Monday, October 11, 2004

Higher education will bring about revolution: Musharraf

KARACHI: President Pervez Musharraf said positive headway in higher education would bring about a revolution. “The progress was achieved because of Prof Attaur Rehman. Our educational institutions are our major non-government organisations and there is a need to make a centre for all learning,” he said.

The president was speaking at the inauguration of the Dr Panjwani Centre for Molecular Medicine and Drug Research (PCMD) at Karachi University (KU) on Monday. Higher Education Commission Chairman Prof Dr Rehman, KU Vice Chancellor Prof Peerzada Qasim and Prof Mohammed Iqbal Chaudhry also addressed the ceremony.

President Musharraf said Dr Rehman had been chosen to develop this vital sector because of his commitment to education. He said 1,500 people would be sent abroad for PhD degrees every year and that the government was increasing the budget for higher education though it had already been raised from Rs 800 million to Rs 9.1 billion. He said Dr Rehman would continue to enjoy the government’s support.

President Musharraf said that 60 percent of trade worldwide was in the engineering and industrial sectors, while “we here are merely growing grass”.

He said Muslims had once been outstanding in the scientific field, but now they had stopped learning. He said Pakistani madarassas educated children and gave them food and accommodation. However, there was a need to make them centres of proper learning, he said.

The president described PCMD as a vital achievement in higher education and said its establishment had an example for philanthropic people in the country.

Dr Rehman said a revolution in any country could only be brought through education. He said science and technology was the main difference between developed nations and the third world. He said that sending 1,500 people abroad every year for their PhDs would help create a large force of intellectuals in the country.

Prof Qasim said that the PCMD was another addition to higher education and research in KU. Acting Chief of the International Centre for Chemical Sciences Prof Choudhry pointed out the importance of institutions of higher education. He said development in higher education was inevitable. The head of Dr Panjwani Memorial Trust, Nadira Panjwani thanked President Musharraf for his attending the ceremony.

Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad Khan, Chief Minister Arbab Ghulam Rahim and other personalities attended. app
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