LAHORE  - The Punjab establishment is locking horns with the federal government in a tug-of-war to gain control of the historic National College of Arts (NCA) which is currently owned by federal government, it is learnt.
Sources privy to the development revealed that the Punjab government had decided to take control of the prestigious institution of art which is known as the cultural hub of the country where students from all over Pakistan come for arts education.
They said that the Punjab Higher Education Department had initiated work for devolution as early as possible and in this regard was not paying any heed to the process of devolution.
However, Cabinet Division, which governs the affairs of the NCA, had so far not been contacted.
After the 18th amendment, education became the subject of provincial governments.
Thus, educational institutions being run by the federal government had been devolved to provincial governments. The NCA, however, had not been devolved as it was not only an educational institution but a place wherein students from across Pakistan and from different cultural backgrounds interact and share their cultural traditions, maintaining the federal reputation. The Cabinet Division has been running the affairs of the NCA since the federal education ministry was abolished.
The move also shook the alumni of NCA across Pakistan as they are holding meetings to discuss line of action in case the provincial government steps up. 
NCA alumnus Akram Dost, who is an acclaimed painter and founding chairman of Fine Arts Department, Balochistan University while talking to The Nation said that NCA had a national standing and a federal recognition. He said that as its name depicted, it was a national level art institution like National Council of Arts and Lok Versa. “It carries symbolic importance for promoting sense of nationalism among students. There should be more institution like NCA as it works for integration among provinces,” he said.
He confirmed that they had held a meeting to discuss the matter in Quetta and said they would protest at every level. “We will meet representatives of both federal and Punjab government to press against devolving NCA, furthermore, it is an asset of all provinces,” he said.  
Having a history of 137 year, the NCA currently has charter as a national center of excellence as it enrolls students from all provinces and regions of Pakistan including Punjab, Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit¬ Baltistan, also Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Azad Jammu and Kashmir as well as foreign students.