The devolution of the HEC to the provinces announced by Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination, Senator Raza Rabbani on Tuesday in compliance with the 18th Amendment will only lead to further deterioration of education in Pakistan. The devolution is a big blow to higher education. The government has failed to grasp the idea that higher education would be better off if left in the hands of a central authority. We have evidence from the past many years when the HEC led by Dr Ata-ur-Rahman showed results such as producing scholars of repute in various fields who had been able to produce quality research papers besides making it possible for Pakistani students to enrol in prestigious foreign universities. If General Musharraf could claim of rendering some admirable service to the country, it is setting up of the HEC and granting it sufficient funds to promote higher education. Education is perquisite to progress and prosperity. It is necessary for developing countries to focus on higher education and prepare human capital that is able to bridge the technological gap between them and the developed countries in the quickest time possible. There are no two opinions on the importance of primary education but at this juncture, we need to train students at higher level so that they are quickly able to contribute to the countrys development. But with the commissions devolution all this may remain a dream. It is a shame to know that the funding of thousands of PhD students studying abroad approved by the HEC has been discontinued, leaving them high and dry in foreign lands. There is no justification whatsoever for withdrawing their funds that has, unfortunately, brought their studies to a halt. It is clear that the HEC has been punished for being straightforward in verifying the degrees of parliamentarians without fear or favour. But it will be the entire country and its education that will suffer.