KC 74th convocation: Shahbaz stresses setting up more schools

Lahore, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif has stressed establishing more educational institutions to groom the steaming millions on whom our generation can pin hopes for bringing development to Pakistan and that indeed can help this country attain respectable position among the comity of nations.

Speaking at the 74th convocation of the Kinnaird College at its Perin Boga Amphitheatre on Tuesday, the chief minister said that Muslim civilization was lagging behind because it abandoned the path of attaining modern knowledge.

Severe mismanagement, however, was witnessed before the annual event began at the country’s prestigious seat of learning for women as more than expected number of guests had turned up. But, this did not mar the function as rest of the things went on as per organizers` plans after kick-off.

The chief minister said that our gross domestic product’s growth rate was just three per cent, while India was progressing with nine per cent and China with 11 per cent.

Despite being a nuclear power, the chief minister said, Pakistan relied heavily on financial institutions like International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. He said no nation could progress while being dependent on foreign aid or loans.

He said Pakistan’s future rested in the hands of its brilliant youth and added that there was a dire need to develop patience and end terrorism and promote literacy to steer the country to progress and prosperity.

The Punjab government had established state-of-the-art Daanish schools in remote districts where best infrastructure and qualified faculty had been provided to groom the young brains of poorest of the poor families. He hoped that students graduating from such schools would compete with graduates of Aitchison College and Kinnaird College.

Earlier, KC Board of Governors` chairman Dr Alexander John Malik said the college wanted the chief minister’s patronage in expanding its facilities so that students belonging to poor segments of society could also be accommodated.

KC principal Dr Rukhsana David said the college had introduced four-year BS (Honors) program and was planning introducing Ph.D programs in English literature and environmental sciences. With the introduction of new programs and increasing number of students, she said, the college was facing acute accommodation problems.

She said the execution of Phase-IV of the college’s building plan was imperative. She also demanded of the chief minister grant at least Rs100 million to build new digital reference library, lecture halls, science laboratories and faculty offices. Later, the chief minister awarded gold medals to 19 graduation students in academics and 15 gold medals in co-curricular activities. As many as 68 students, 38 from 2006-10 session and 30 from 2005-09 session, who attained collective grade point average of 3.80/4.0 and above, were recognized on the Principal’s Honors List. However, no medal was awarded to top position holders any masters` degree program. The chief minister also did not make any announcement with regard to financial aid to the college.

The event, where graduates of two degree and postgraduate sessions were invited, initially remained largely mismanaged because number of students and their accompanying guests was much more than the actual seating capacity of the historic amphitheatre named after former Dean of Humanities, Mrs. Perin Boga. “We had a registration of 750 students and guests, but almost 1,400 students and guests showed up,” a teacher later told reporters.

A large number of students and their parents could not make their entry to the grand hall while many more were stuck docilely in the stairs and nothing unpleasant happened till the conclusion of the ceremony. Also, members of the press corps had to occupy seats reserved for faculty members at the stage after failing to find any space reserved for them.