Bahawalpur a city with great cultural heritage 

BAHAWALPUR   -  Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar presided over the 17th Convocation of the Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB) here on Friday wherein medals and degrees were awarded to 2347 graduates from the Session 2015-2019.

The governor along with IUB Vice Chancellor Engr. Prof. Dr. Athar Mahboob conferred degrees on 60 PhD, 265 M.Phil, 108 Gold Medal, 104 Silver Medal, and 2022 BS, B.Sc, MA, and M.Sc graduates.

During his visit, the governor attended a special briefing in the office of the Vice-Chancellor where the later briefed him about the development and research projects of the university.

Sarwar, who is also the chancellor of the varsity, said that Cholistan’s artificial rain settlement project should be started in the form of a pilot project. He also appreciated the research on cotton. On this occasion, he also planted a sapling in connection with the Clean and Green Pakistan campaign. The governor inaugurated the new building of the University College of Art and Design built in the style of the historic Fort Drawer, the newly constructed teaching block consisting of classrooms and laboratories, and renovation of the Jamia Masjid. He also paid a detailed visit to Baghdad ul Jadeed Campus.

In his presidential address at the convocation, The governor said the government was taking many steps for the development and welfare of the youth. The government has made education, including in the field of higher education, one of its priorities, he said.

He said the responsibility of our educational institutions was not only to provide education but also to create active citizens through the character building of youth who can give leadership to society. The current era is one of globalization based on economic competition. The path to development cannot be paved without promoting a knowledge-based economy.

He asked the students to find new ways to solve various problems of society and guide the country and the nation. He said that Bahawalpur is a city with great cultural heritage and intellectual heritage.

The land of Bahawalpur was the land of Hazrat Khawaja Ghulam Farid who taught peace, brotherhood, and coexistence. The IUB was the crown jewel of the head which was adorning local students as well as students from Gilgit-Baltistan to Balochistan.

He highly appreciated the rapid development of the IUB, gaining world prominence in the rankings, extraordinary increase in the number of students and teachers, and congratulated the Vice-Chancellor Engr. Prof. Dr. Athar Mahboob, faculty and administration.

He said the government has appointed Vice-Chancellors on merit in universities. An example of this is Jamia Islamia which under the leadership of Engr. Prof. Dr. Athar Mahboob is making extraordinary progress in every field. Delivering a welcome address, Vice-Chancellor Engr. Prof. Dr. Athar Mahboob said that Islamia University Bahawalpur has become one of the 1000 best universities in the world and has become the 11th in Pakistan and the top university in South Punjab.

The current administration has initiated reforms in the administrative, financial, teaching, and research areas of the university. An IT-based system was introduced to ensure merit in recruitment and admissions. The number of faculties has been increased from 7 to 15 to give maximum access to knowledge to the students. The university has received wide acceptance of admissions from all over Pakistan and in a short span of 20 months, the number of students has increased from 13,000 to 53,000.

At present 40 percent of the students of the university are benefiting from various scholarships. Under the Hepatitis Campaign, Jamia Islamia has become the first Hepatitis Free University in the country. Similarly, the corona vaccination of teachers and students has been completed. More than 14 Selection Boards and 29 Selection Committees have provided jobs to 2218 teachers and non-teaching staff.

The number of teachers has increased from 500 to 1200. The Prime Minister of Pakistan recently inaugurated the 2.5 MW Solar Park, National Cotton Breeding Center, Cricket Stadium, and other projects. The joint intercropping project of Jamia Islamia and the University of China has been included in the CPEC project. The university is currently undergoing development projects worth Rs 12 billion of which Rs 4 billion has been allocated by the federal government for the construction of new campuses and faculties. Development projects worth Rs 4 billion are being expedited under public-private partnership.

He said that all these achievements are due to the full support of the federal and provincial governments, the hard work of the teachers, students and the support of the local community. He thanked Governor Punjab Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar for attending the convocation especially. Members of the National and Provincial Assembly, Divisional and District Officers, and dignitaries of the city participated in the convocation in large numbers.