Interior Minister Rehman Malik Monday said that razing of unregistered Madaris would be undertaken from the 1st January, adding the step would even be endorsed by the Ulema, South Punjab  News reported.Talking to media men after a meeting with a delegation of Ulema in Islamabad, he said the killers of Benazir Bhutto had also taken refuge at a Madrassa with the consent of its in-charge.He said action against unregistered Madaris would be taken with the cooperation of Wafaq-ul-Madaris and Tanzeem-ul-Madaris."The Ulema will stand with us when we will raze these unregistered Madaris from January 1," he said.Rehman Malik said Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) had been instructed to take action against those who send anti-state emails and SMSs.To a question regarding the President's return to Pakistan, he said the enemies of the government and its allies had to face disappointment. "We welcome the President back home."

More than 50 children and men were found shackled in the basement of a seminary off Super Highway on Monday night.
According to Malir SSP Rao Anwar, police raided Jamia Masjid Zakriya Kondali and recovered people whose ages ranged between 15 and 40.
The senior superintendent of police said they were drug addicts and the seminary`s administration was running a detoxification unit. A signboard at the seminary said that drug addicts were treated there.
Police said the inmates had been brought there by their families for treatment of addiction. However, keeping them in fetters was highly objectionable and illegal, the SSP said.
The caretaker of the seminary, Qari Dawood, fled, but three members of the management were detained, police said.
The place was raided after a television channel broadcast a report about the seminary, Mr Anwar said.
Several detained children told media personal at the seminary after their freedom that they used to be beaten up by the management of the seminary.
Most of the children were from Karachi while a few others were from Peshawar.

The Supreme Court on Thursday recommended that Pir Mehr Ali Shah Arid Agriculture University Rawalpindi (AAUR) Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Khalid Mahmood should resign himself as if the court passes a judgment on merit then he would have to surrender the salaries that he had gotten after retirement. The court observed that there were three SC judgments, which held that instead of giving extension to the officials after their retirement the junior officers should be promoted. A two-member bench, headed by Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and comprising Justice Tariq Parvez, hearing the case of fourth extension to AAUR VC said if the court would pass verdict on merit then he would have to surrender his salaries that he obtained after the extensions. Punjab Additional Advocate General on behalf of the Punjab chief secretary submitted a report on extensions to the VC. The court directed the VC to decide himself within 10 days what he had to do, otherwise the court will decide the case on merit and he would have to return back the salaries and other perks he had withdrawn illegally. The court had taken suo motu notice on the matter on an application filed by Ahsan Munir expressing shock over giving extension to an individual who is 70-year-old by relaxing the relevant rules instead of providing opportunity to a young person in his place. Khan is serving his fourth extension, which had been given to him in violation of the university’s charter. He was appointed VC of the university in 2001 during the government of Pervez Musharraf being a close relative of the then Petroleum Minister Naurez Shakoor. The caretaker government of Mohammadmian Soomro granted him last extension that would come to an end in 2012.

Two girls’ schools were targeted by terrorists in Swabi and Bannu, destroying one and damaging the other.Twin bomb blasts destroyed a major portion of a girls’ school in the Swabi district. The explosions that occurred one after the other destroyed five of the seven rooms of the Primary Girls’ School, Shewa No 3, police officials said. The school is located in a densely-populated area, and the sound of the explosions was heard in several villages of the area, waking people up from sleep. Officials from the Kalu Khan police station, in whose jurisdiction the incident happened, rushed to the school soon after the explosions. They said the bombs were planted in veranda near the classrooms’ walls. The school building was declared unfit for use, and the girls are likely to be shifted to nearby schools.

In a separate incident, terrorists hit a Girls Higher Secondary School in Bannu. The school building was damaged in the explosion caused by a bomb planted at its premises. The explosion resulted in damaging doors and windows of the building while the residences of a former nazim union council Barkatullah Khan and his relatives were also damaged.

A recent public opinion poll revealed that the top-most research priority areas identified by Pakistanis included Chemistry, Urdu literature, Islamic studies, Arabic, Botany and Zoology. Those who responded to the survey asked of Pakistani academics to devote their energies on the above-mentioned research areas and requested the governments to fund additional research in Chemistry and other basic sciences.
You are not alone in wondering how you missed seeing the results of this critical opinion poll in which Pakistanis identified research priority areas for the nation. In fact, no such poll exists. But what exists is a list of  7,151 Ph.D. dissertations completed since independence in Pakistan, which shows that most frequent research subjects included Chemistry, Urdu literature, Islamic studies, Arabic, Botany and Zoology.
The following graph is a pictorial representation of the subject areas used to categorise the 7,151 doctoral dissertations. The size of each subject area is in proportion to how frequently it appeared in the list thus revealing Chemistry and other basic sciences along with Islamic studies and Urdu being the most common research areas for doctoral dissertations in Pakistan. Education and agronomy are rare examples of frequent research topics that address immediate needs in Pakistan.

When one thinks of the grave challenges Pakistan has faced in the past three decades, Chemistry, Zoology and Urdu literature do not come to mind. One sees poverty, income inequality, food security, water shortages, infrastructure deficits, illiteracy, violence, wars, religious fundamentalism and sectarianism as some of the challenges that threaten the survival of the society and the State. It is hard to comprehend why academics in Pakistan would avoid focusing on the immediate challenges, but instead focus on subject areas where their impact will, at best, be marginal because researchers in Europe and North America have significantly more capital, infrastructural, and other intellectual resources at their disposal than their counterparts in Pakistan.
Some research labs in Pakistan, such as HEJ Research Institute of Chemistry, are one of the finest in the world. Several other research centres in pure sciences produce high-quality research in technical subjects. Similarly, some research centres focused on languages and literature are also delivering quality research. If the socio-economic conditions in Pakistan were the same as in Canada or in another G-7 country, it would have made perfect sense to devote the nation’s resources on basic sciences. However, while Pakistanis struggle for potable water, electricity, affordable health-care, food, and shelter, Pakistani academics are dedicating their time and nation’s resources on topics that do not address the nation’s immediate needs.
Research in applied and pure sciences is a very expensive proposition even for a rich country. The federal government in Canada, for instance, spent over C$10 billion on research in science and technology during the fiscal year 2009-2010. The Canadian government dedicated over a billion dollars to fund research through the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council, an agency that funds academic research. Similarly, another granting agency, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council funded an additional C$330 million to support academic research in the humanities and social sciences.
With a nation of only 33 million people, Canada spends over C$300 per capita annually in science and technology research. In order to match Canada’s per capita spending on research in science and technology, Pakistan would need to spend over $55 billion annually. This obviously is a non-starter for Pakistan because the entire planned federal government spending for the current fiscal year is around $32 billion.
Granted that research expenses in Pakistan on a parity basis are much lower than that in Canada or other western countries. However, the comparative advantage, if it at all exists, rests on relatively inexpensive graduate students and faculty members. The expensive research equipment required for research has to be imported from abroad, which takes resources away from other competing needs such as primary education and health care.
Some research spending in engineering is also directed at technologies that may not have a direct benefit for Pakistan. Consider the newly established mechatronics research centres at various engineering universities in Pakistan. Unlike the mechatronic research labs in the United States, such as the one at MIT where doctoral students and post-docs are busy in advanced research relevant to the American industrial needs, the Pakistani initiatives have essentially become undergraduate teaching labs where budding engineers are being trained in skills that may have no relevance to the engineering job market in Pakistan.
Even if Pakistan were to produce internationally recognised research from the advanced research labs that have been set up for millions of dollars, can Pakistan-based researchers effectively compete, either in quality or in quantity of research, with the researchers based in the advanced economies. Let’s compare published research in mechatronics. Of the 2,144 papers on mechatronics listed in the Web of Science citation database only three journal articles are listed from researchers based in Pakistan. Furthermore, these articles are yet to be referenced by any other researcher. As a comparison, the most referenced paper in mechatronics is from Keio University in Japan. Similarly in Chemistry, the most cited paper published by a US-based researcher in 2010 was referenced by 322 other researchers from all over the world. For the same time period, the most cited research paper in Chemistry from Pakistan attracted 22 citations, all from researchers based in Pakistan.
The Higher Education Commission (HEC) in Pakistan has made some progress in aligning research priorities and research needs in Pakistan.  The Commission’s biggest impact could be seen in the quantity of research produced in Pakistan. Between 2003 and 2009, over 3,000 doctoral dissertations were defended in Pakistan, which is a result of the HEC’s efforts to promote higher education. As a comparison, fewer than 3,300 doctoral dissertations were defended in Pakistan between 1947 and 2002. While the HEC can lobby for funds for higher education, the ultimate decision on how research dollars are spent is made by academics and university administrators.
It is rather sad that while Pakistan lost almost 100,000 people in the devastating earthquake in 2005, which also left thousands more injured and millions without shelter and livelihoods, Pakistani academics has since then produced only seven doctoral dissertations on the structural damages caused by earthquakes. Five of the seven dissertations were supervised by my former professor, Dr. Akhtar Naeem Khan at the engineering university in Peshawar.
If the nation’s brightest and smartest remain busy staring into test tubes or trying to determine how Arabic language developed in Bangladesh (how many Arabic speakers are there in Bangladesh anyways?) who would address the questions about what concerns ordinary Pakistanis. Who would research the societal and health impacts of the devastation caused by earthquakes and floods? Who would determine how to rebuild villages, schools, water supply systems, and hospitals in areas devastated by natural disasters? Who should Pakistani victims of natural disaster turn to for research in reconstructive surgeries, physiotherapy, trauma, and prosthetics? And who will find innovative strategies to find jobs for the unemployed, shelter for the homeless, and affordable health care for the poor? More importantly, who will find ways to put the sectarian and fundamentalist genies back into the bottle?
Pakistanis will be well-served if its academics and intellectual elite focus their research on finding answers to what country needs today. One would hope to see academics align their research interests with the needs of their fellow citizens and that the limited research budgets are devoted to immediate needs rather than speculative research that may bear fruit in the decades to come.
It is quite possible for researchers to shift their focus from the esoteric topics to applied research that may deliver results in the short run for Pakistan. I wish a few years later when I draw another graph for research in Pakistan it would show the nation’s brightest focused on devising plans for affordable health care, eradicating poverty and hunger, and improving literacy and security.

The results of first-year Intermediate exams for Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad and Multan were cancelled later on Saturday after the students across the province protested against the online system of examination which caused errors in their results , reported Express News 24/7.
Punjab Education Minister Mujtaba Shujaur Rehman informed that the Punjab Chief Minister has constituted an inquiry committee to investigate the issue regarding the publication of incorrect results.
Rehman said that new results will be announced within a month after rechecking.
He added that the second-year students, who are doubtful about their results, can get their papers rechecked free of cost.
The Education Minister defended the online system of examination results and said that the system itself is error-free but the mistakes took place due to lack of awareness among the staff operating the system.
Earlier on Saturday, the Intermediate students across Punjab protested against errors in their results as they besieged and ransacked the board offices across different cities. The students took the staff hostage and destroyed the records stored in the offices.


According to Express 24/7 correspondent Ejaz Alvi, students from Faisalabad protested in the Government College for Women’s vicinity located in Madina Town.
The students shunned the results and termed the computerised result system as “fake.” According to them, the competent students have failed and the incompetent students have passed.


Protests were also held in the suburbs of Faisalabad, including Toba Tek Singh and Kharrian, in which the students demanded that their papers be rechecked.
Express 24/7 correspondent Owais Jafri reported that about 5, 000 students from Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan protested against the discrepancy in the result.
Secretary Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (BISE) Multan Rao Shahid Mahmood said that they have allocated two days for rechecking and recounting of results, and that the lists have been put up in the board building to assist the students. Southern Punjab has four boards for intermediate and secondary education.
Jafri added that the total number of affected students from the first year of intermediate is about 30, 000, while the number of students who appeared in the exam is 54, 000. He said that the protests in Dera Ghazi Khan, Bahawalpur and Rahim Yar Khan worsened.
Around 80% students have been given average marks, this also includes students who were high-scorers in last year’s result.
The students refused to pay any fee for rechecking and said that it is the mistake of the board and that they will not pay anything. They said the board should take the responsibility and facilitate the students.
Students hailing from the rural areas faced more problems because they did not get any chance to meet the officials and get their queries answered.
No fee to be charged for rechecking: Punjab government
In the aftermath of the protests, the Punjab government announced that no fee will be charged from intermediate students for the rechecking of papers.
Earlier, it was reported that an amount of Rs700-750 was being charged by the board for rechecking.
Punjab government spokesperson said that all those students who have doubts regarding their marks and would want the board to scrutinise their examination scripts can submit their applications without any fee.
He also urged that the students should abide by the rules and regulations of the board and not to get themselves involved in any criminal acts.
He also appealed to the students to not damage the government and public property.

MULTAN: Vice Chancellor Bahauddin ZakariyaUniversity Professor Dr Khawaja Alaqama said that there would be no compromise on quality of education, research and publications in the varsity.

In a statement, BZU VC Prof Dr Alaqama said that he would take steps to improve ranking of the university. "We are living in age of specialisation and Pakistan has to do more to improve the standard of education," he said.

"Our education system has been divided into many forms such as annual system, semester system, O-Level, A-level etc, he said and added that differences generated complication in our society."

He said that he needed cooperation of teachers to deliver fruitful result, adding, "I will try my best to resolve problems faced by different departments in Bahauddin Zakariya University."

He urged teachers to play their effective role in promoting quality education and culture of research in the varsity.

Dr Abdul Qadus Suhaib, Dr Ayaz Rana, Dr Asghar Ali, Dr Hamayun Perveze, Dr Alamdar Hussian Bukhari and others were also present.

The teachers assured BZU VC of their full cooperation for promoting quality education standard.

MULTAN,Sept 10th: Multan board of intermediate &Secondary education Multan on Saturday announced the result of Intermediate (Annual) Examination,2011.Private educational institution got 32 out of total 34 positions.Briefing the salient features of the result Prof.Muhammad Akbar Controller of Examination said that total 68,033 candidates applied,of them 66,765 appeared in the examination and total 33,466 candidates declared successful achieving the pass percentage of 50.12. Result of Pre-Medical group was 78.79 percent as 5392 out of 6843 passed, Pre Engineering maintained the pass percentage of 70.52 as 5427 out of 7695 candidates declared successful.General science group result was 48.79 percent as 2364 out of 4845 candidates were declared successful,Commerce group achieved the pass percentage of 51.55 as 2684 out of 5206 were passed, result of humanities group was 41.72 percent as 17,599 out of 42,176 were declared successful. Misbah Mushtaq D/O Muhammad Mushtaq (Roll No.107369) of Punjab College got the toppest position in the Multan board by securing 1034 marks,Arooba Safeer D/O Badaruddin Safeer (Roll No.106721) of Punjab College, Usman Sabir S/O Sabir Ali (Roll No.105298) of Rise College of Science got second position by securing 1025 marks, Ayesha Ikram D/O Ch.Ikramullah of Hawk Higher Secondary School Khanewal (Roll No.100263) and Muslim Raza  Son of Ali Mehdi Taseer (Roll No.197734) of Punjab College of Information Technology annexed third position by obtaining 1024 marks. Highest Position among Boys: Usman Sabir S/O Sabir Ali (Roll No.105298) of Rise College of Science got toppest position by securing 1025 marks,Muslim Raza  Son of Ali Mehdi Taseer (Roll No.197734) of Punjab College of Information Technology annexed Second position by obtaining 1024 marks, Hafiz Muhammad Taimoor Khalid Son of Khalid Nazir (roll No.106399) of Rise College and Muhammad Masood  Arshad  of Muslim Public Hiugher Secondary School Multan(Roll No.108610) got third position by securing 1023 marks. Highest Position among Girls:  Misbah Mushtaq D/O Muhammad Mushtaq (Roll No.107369) of Punjab College got the toppest position in the Multan board by securing 1034 marks,Arooba Safeer D/O Badaruddin Safeer (Roll No.106721) of Punjab College and  Ayesha Ikram D/O Ch.Ikramullah of Hawk Higher Secondary School Khanewal (Roll No.100263) got second and third position respectively.PRE-MEDICAL GROUP (Among boys): Muhammad Rizwanullah son of Mushtaq Ali (Roll No.108730) of Muslim Public HIgher Secondary School Multan,Ali Hussain son of Ghulam Hussain (Roll No.106295) of Rise College, Muhammad Babar Mushtaq son of Muhammad Mushtaq (Roll No.103328) of Educators college Chichawatni and Muhammad Sajid Qasim son of Qasim ASli Malik of Science Spectrum  School Shujabad got first,second and third positions by securing 1019,1016, 1014,1014 marks respectively.PRE-MEDICAL GROUP (Among girls): Misbah Mushtaq D/O Muhammad Mushtaq (Roll No.107369) of Punjab College got the toppest position in the Multan board by securing 1034 marks,Arooba Safeer D/O Badaruddin Safeer (Roll No.106721) of Punjab College and  Ayesha Ikram D/O Ch.Ikramullah of Hawk Higher Secondary School Khanewal (Roll No.100263) got second and third position respectively.PRE ENGINEERING GROUP (among boys)
Usman Sabir S/O Sabir Ali (Roll No.105298) of Rise College of Science,Muslim Raza  Son of Ali Mehdi Taseer (Roll No.197734) of Punjab College of Information Technology ,Hafiz Muhammad Taimoor Khalid Son of Khalid Nazir (roll No.106399) of Rise College and Muhammad Masood  Arshad  of Muslim Public Hiugher Secondary School Multan(Roll No.108610)got First, second and third positions by securing 1025, 1024, 1023,1023 marks respectively.PRE ENGINEERING GROUP (among girls)Raiha Hassan D/O Hassan Ejaz of Punjab College (roll No.107371), Saira Arshad D/O Arshad hussain (Rol No.106966) of same college, and Aneeqa Sikandar D/O Sikandar Hayat Bhatti of city College of Science Multan stood first,second and Third by securing 1011, 1004 and 992 marks respectively.COMMERCE GROUP(among boys) Muhammad Ali Asghar Son of  Mazhar Javed of Punjab College(Roll No.302350), Iftikhar Ahmed son of Muhammad Ismail (Roll No.302088) of BC college,Mailsi, and Sherjeel Ahmed son of Zulfikar Ali of Punjab College of Commerce(Roll No.302215) got first, second and third positions by securing 969, 952 and 951marks respectively.
COMMERCE GROUP(among girls) Aroosa Kanwal D/O Sharif Ahmed of educators college (roll No.302425), Arooba Nisar D/O Nisar Ahmed (Roll No.302477) of Punjab College Multan, and Sidra Mustansar D/O Mustansar Billah Divisional Public School Mian Chunnu (Roll No.300688) stood first ,second and third by obtaining 980, 958, and 956 marks respectively. GENERAL SCIENCXE GROUP (among boys) Abbas Hassan S/O Hassan Raza of Punjab college of IT Multan(roll No.107726), Luqman Abdullah son of Muhammad Abdullah (roll No.105411) of Superior College of Science,Multan, Muhammad Adil Akbar (roll No.105520) of Rise College, and Mughees Ahmed Mirza son of Mirza Shabeer Ahmed of Punjab College(roll No.107798)annexed first,second and third position by securing 992,933, and 927 marks respectively.GENERAL SCIENCXE GROUP (among girls) Hafiza Nayab Ayesha D/O Muhammad ilyas Bhutta of Punjab college (Roll No.106894)Hajra Tariq D/O Tariq Nazir (roll No.109704)of City college of Science and Comnmerce Multan, and Sahar Noor D/O Habib-ur-rehman of Suffa Educational Complex Sahiwal (roll No.103234) stood first ,second and third by getting 980, 979 and 953 marks respectively.

Twenty one new schools constructed by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in the earthquake-affected districts of Muzaffarabad and Bagh were inaugurated by the Ambassador of the Kingdom of The Netherlands, Joost Reintjes, at a ceremony held in the Government Boys Primary School Mera Paprosa.
The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands has contributed US$32 million, making it the largest donor for the earthquake education programme. This funding is part of a broader package of support to UNICEF for school reconstruction in the earthquake affected region from a group of donors.
With the funds, UNICEF is expected to complete the planned 691 schools (410 permanent and 281 pre-fabricated schools) in AJK and KPK provinces by the end of the current year. The total number of beneficiary students of the program would be 65,000.
Out of the Dutch contribution, 121 permanent and 68 pre-fabricated schools have been built; a total of 290 schools (222 permanent and 68 pre-fab) will be completed by the end of the program in August 2012.
The program has not only provided the hardware in terms of school buildings, but also provided the soft component, i.e. teacher training, to members of the school management committee (SMC) and capacity development of government officials of education departments. Students were also provided with training for psycho-social, issues related to natural disasters.
“Education is a basic necessity for development which should be at the easy reach of every child” said Mr Reintjes. The Ambassador appreciated the difficulty for the parents in sending their children to school due to the harsh winters and difficult terrain. He was glad that the enrolment figures had improved greatly due to the programme and emphasised the need for quality education. The Netherlands Government stepped in after the devastating earthquake of 2005 which was an example of the longstanding bilateral cooperation between the two countries.
Under the UN Delivering as One Programme, UNICEF has been collaborating with the Government of Pakistan to support the ‘Build Back Better’ initiative whereby earthquake resistant permanent schools structures and basic health units are being constructed at various locations in the earthquake-affected areas.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony, UNICEF Representative in Pakistan, Dan Rohrmann said, "Investing in children's right to quality education is an investment that not only fulfills their basic rights, but also contributes to the future of Pakistan - an investment that forever will change the lives of the most disadvantaged and vulnerable children.
“Creating opportunities for children in the wake of the tragic 2005 earthquake, illustrates that building back better through the combination of seismic resistant school buildings, clean drinking water and sanitation facilities and child friendly schooling, provides a winning combination for the children, the parents, the teachers and the local community. The schools are becoming the hubs for community developments," he added.

It was a monumental project with modest beginnings: a small group of scholars and some index cards. The plan was to explore a long-dead language that would reveal an ancient world of chariots and concubines, royal decrees and diaries — and omens that came from the heavens and sheep livers.
The year: 1921. The place: The University of Chicago. The project: Assembling an Assyrian dictionary based on words recorded on clay or stone tablets unearthed from ruins in Iraq, Iran, Syria and Turkey, written in a language that hadn’t been uttered for more than 2,000 years. The scholars knew the project would take a long time. 
No one quite expected how very long.
Decades passed. The team grew. Scholars arrived from Vienna, Paris, Copenhagen, Jerusalem, Berlin, Helsinki, Baghdad and London, joining others from the US and Canada. One generation gave way to the next, one century faded into the next. Some signed on early in their careers; they were still toiling away at retirement. The work was slow, sometimes frustrating and decidedly low-tech: Typewriters. Mimeograph machines. And index cards. Eventually, nearly 2 million of them.
And now, 90 years later, a finale. The Chicago Assyrian Dictionary is now officially complete — 21 volumes of Akkadian, a Semitic language (with several dialects, including Assyrian) that endured for 2,500 years. The project is more encyclopedia than glossary, offering a window into the ancient society of Mesopotamia, now modern-day Iraq, through every conceivable form of writing: love letters, recipes, tax records, medical prescriptions, astronomical observations, religious texts, contracts, epics, poems and more.Why is there a need for a dictionary of a language last written around A.D. 100 that only a small number of scholars worldwide know of? Gil Stein, director of the university’s Oriental Institute (the dictionary’s home), has a ready answer: 
“The Assyrian Dictionary gives us the key into the world’s first urban civilization,” he says. “Virtually everything that we take for granted ... has its origins in Mesopotamia, whether it’s the origins of cities, of state societies, the invention of the wheel, the way we measure time, and most important the invention of writing. If we ever want to understand our roots,” Stein adds, “we have to understand this first great civilization.” 
There were omens, too — ways of divining the future by reading smoke patterns, the stars, the moon and sheep livers. “Like all people at all times, they wanted to try to find some way of controlling their world,” says Martha Roth, the dictionary’s editor-in-charge and dean of humanities. 
“It’s very difficult to draw the line between actually believing and being superstitious.”

“Overall percentage of rural children in class 5 reading a class 2 text in Urdu/Sindhi was 52 per cent while for the English text it was 42 per cent. This meant that more than half of all rural children in class 5 in Pakistan were at least three grade levels behind,” said one of the survey`s main findings on education.
It said 43 per cent of the government primary schools did not have safe drinking water and 55 per cent were without proper washroom facilities – problems that have tagged along for decades and not adequately addressed. The survey asserted that education was central to the “development strategy of an economy” playing a vital role in human capital formation.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, officials of the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) were quick to respond to the findings. “How long will we keeping hearing about problems that have existed for decades and not properly addressed,” said a senior FDE official.
Another pointed out how the government had been neglecting the country`s top most priority. “This is exactly why private schools have opened up in every street, charging exorbitant fee for something that cannot be categorised as quality education,” he said, adding that enrollments in Madrassas were increasing because education system was itself a victim of ill-will in the country.
Sketching a dismal picture, the survey explained that the situation of education sector in Pakistan was not encouraging due to poverty and “depressing economic conditions”.
But above all the survey explained how extremely high portion of the education budget was spent on recurrent heads, mainly comprising salaries in contrast to the meager amount spent on quality improvements, such as teacher`s training, curriculum development, supervision, monitoring etc.
Although the survey, like in the past, emphasised it was necessary the proportion of development spending on education must be increased, large number of institutions across the country were still missing basic infrastructure facilities in this day and age.
The quality of existing learning environment was evident from the fact that nearly 16,000 government schools had no buildings, more than 53,000 had no boundary walls, more than 54,000 schools had no provision of clean drinking water, more than 58,000 were missing latrines and children got education in nearly 100,000 schools that had no electricity.
Despite the fact that the Higher Education Commission (HEC) endeavoured in reshaping human capital with better skills and expertise, the government had reduced its development budget to Rs9.2 billion in 2011-11 compared to Rs11.3 billion in 2009-10 from Rs16.4 billion in 2008-09 due to continued financial vulnerabilities, the survey said.
In 2010-11 allocation made under Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) made for the Ministry of Education`s 86 programmes and projects stood was a little over Rs5 billion. Of which Rs1.7 billion had been released up to January 2011.
However, as under the 18th amendment the ministry had been devolved, no further releases were made.
The ongoing projects and programmes were to be operated by the provincial governmental or relevant ministries in which they have been transferred.
According to the survey, the overall literacy rate (age 10 years and above) was 57.7 per cent (69.5 per cent for male and 45.2 per cent for female) compared to 57.4 per cent (69.3 per cent for male and 44.7 per cent for female) for 2009-10. Literacy remained higher in urban areas (73.2 per cent) than in rural areas (49.2 per cent), and was more prevalent among men (80.2 percent) compared to women (65.5 per cent) in rural areas.

There is no doubt that in a country like Pakistan, education should be a top priority. It is believed that the country’s dismal literacy rates over the years has contributed in the rise of frustration and crime in the cities, and kept the majority of people in the rural areas ‘superstitious’ and an easy pray to the trickery of false pirs, and the exploitation of feudal lords, jagirdars and maulvis.A majority of state and government workers, along with various NGOs and donor agencies, who are involved in the uplift of education in the country have suggested that low literacy rates have helped extremist and sectarian organisations in easily ‘brainwashing’ the illiterate young men into committing acts of carnage and bloodshed in the name of religion.For this purpose, these organisations use a warped mixture of cleverly selected verses from the Quran and sayings (hadith) of the Prophet  (PBUH) – giving it an un-scholarly and distorted interpretation – and an equally twisted worldview about international politics and the ‘sinister’ role being played by Hindus (India), Christians (US/West) and, of course, the Jews.Nevertheless, there are some prominent intellectuals, educationists and scholars in Pakistan who, in spite of being at the forefront of lobbying for the implementation of far-reaching education policies, have been heading another debate regarding the issue.Well-known intellectuals and academics such as Pervez Hoodbhoy, Rubina Saigol, A.H. Nayyar and Ahmed Salim along with historians such as Dr. Mubarak Ali and the late K.K. Aziz have for years been highly suspicious and critical of the kind of textbooks being used in schools and colleges across Pakistan, especially since the early 1970s.Those who were already fretting over the way generations of Pakistani students have been taught skewed history lessons about Islam and Pakistan through state-approved history books, are now worried that the biased and distorted imagery of Muslims and other faiths in textbooks are being given glamorous currency even by certain TV personalities.To quote Rubina Saigol: ‘After the 1971 break up of Pakistan and the war with India, educational discourse on nation building in Pakistan became much more introverted. The shock and horror of the defeat in East Pakistan led to the reconstruction of ideological boundaries in a much more narrow form. A violent, militaristic and negative nationalism, which saw enemies on every border, was reconstituted. This nationalism was not so much for progress or development as much as against Pakistan’s myriad enemies lurking behind every door.’This new nationalism required a re-ordering of the past. Those unacceptable to the newly formed insecure national self had to be violently expunged. The pages of time had to be cleansed of the enemy’s presence. Ram, Buddha, Jesus Christ and several others, who had earlier been allowed in with a generous hospitality, had to make unceremonious exits from the pages of history textbooks. In their stead, the Khulfa-i-Rashideen, belonging to Arabia and to an ‘other’  alternative past, were welcomed warmly into the texts.During General Ziaul Haq’s dictatorship, religion as an instrument of homogenisation and control became center-stage in educational policies.An elaborate study conducted by a group of distinguished Pakistani historians and educationalists in 2003 states the prevalence of a theocratic vision in social studies textbooks.The report noticed the following in Pakistani social studies and history books:* Insensitivity to the existing religious diversity of the nation.
* Incitement to militancy and violence, including encouragement of jihad and shahadat.
* A glorification of war and the use of force.* Inaccuracies of fact and omissions that serve to substantially distort the nature and significance of actual events in our history.
* Perspectives that encourage prejudice, bigotry and discrimination towards fellow citizens, especially women and religious minorities.
* Omission of concepts that could encourage critical self awareness among students.During the Zia era, science too faced the dictator’s Orwellian Islamisation process.As Professor Hoodbhoy explains in his reveling book, Science & The Islamic World (1988), sullied science and farcical concepts of religion came together in an official conference called by Zia (at the cost of millions of rupees) in which papers on the following, (and absurd) topics were read: The harnessing of Djinns to create an alternative energy source; chemical compositions of Djinns; measuring the temperature of Hell; calculating the formulae for sawab (blessing); and measuring the speed of Heaven!Almost every educated Pakistani (after the early 1970s) has received ‘education’ based on the above-mentioned criteria.However, it is also true that the blatant historical and theological distortions present in school textbooks have been cleverly and subtly built in (mainly by ‘pro-establishment historians and ulema’) into the books.This means that although many Pakistani children grow up believing certain historical biases and prejudices to be a ‘historical fact,’ there is always room for many to inquire about and revise their understanding through further study and books by genuine historians, progressive Islamic scholars and secular intellectuals.However, there is now an attempt (mainly by non-state and non-governmental elements) to infiltrate and clog even this space as well.More than ever, many puritanical organisations which may not necessarily be militant, have started publishing literature to counter the claims of secular historians and intellectuals.And this doesn’t just stop at Urdu book stores because the religion and history sections of even the most upscale book stores in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad are now graced by books that give so-called historical, theological and ‘geo-political’ arguments for exactly the kind of distortions people like Hoodbhoy, Nayyar, Saigol and Dr. Mubarak have been warning against.But whereas this particular tussle between the two opposite spectrums has so-far remained intellectual in nature and restricted to middle-class interests, educationists working in the field of schools catering to the lower-middle and the working-classes have been facing an altogether more worrisome phenomenon.Take the shocking example of a Class-I Urdu book that this writer was made aware of

SEASONED TEACHER DIES
MULTAN,April 7th: A great educationist ,seasoned Science Teacher and former head Master of Government High School Muzaffargarh Alhaj Ata-urrehm Sheikh died after heart attack.He had also served as group leader of Hujjaj for a decade.His funeral prayer was offered on Thursday in Adda wali mosque.which was attended by thousdands of people.mostly his pupils.

How many categories books can be divided into? The philosopher Francis Bacon answered some four centuries ago, "Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed and a few to be chewed and digested."

During a visit to H-9 Sunday Bazaar, when this scribe asked the complementary question, how many types of readers are there? Saien Ditta- the old books-vendor remarked "some read only if they have to, others read anything they can get hold of, yet others search for challenges". Some like poetry while others enjoy non-fiction. Some readers start a book hesitantly until the writer casts a spell on them; others open books with great gusto but abandon them after leafing through a couple of pages.

Ditta, 47, sitting on a bench inside his Stalls No D-502 & D-503 while talking to Daily Times said that book reading habit no doubt was on the verge of decline because of rapidly growing computer technology where everyone could access anything at any time with spending a meager amount of money and that too without leaving their homes. "I have put up all sort of books ranging from Urdu and English literature to Persian, French, Italian, and German literature from all over the world. Besides a wide range of course books from matriculation levels to graduation, local and international magazines, cooking books, English novels and stationary unfortunately the customers are few," Ditta regretted.

There are around 5 old books stalls in H-9 Bazaar held under the banner of Capital Development Authority (CDA) selling various sorts of literature and academic books to visitors but it was witnessed during the visit that only students who were preparing for their exams were frequently visiting the stalls and asking for guess papers/ keys/ or guide books from the book vendors.

I have been doing this business as a labour of love. I am a book freak for the last 15 years. "I feel a sense of satisfaction while reading a book and this trait of mine pushed me to establish this business I started from G-9 Sunday Bazaar that was later shifted to H-9 Bazaar," Ditta said.

When asked why the habit of reading books was on the verge of extinct, Ditta smilingly remarked in Pakistan it was never on the rise. "Centuries ago, there was no Internet facility in Europe but the whole Europe experienced the intellectual revolution when philosophers and intellectuals brought prosperity to their respective countries," he said adding he had access to modern technology but still steal more pleasure reading a book rather than browsing internet.

Another reason that caused the downfall of reading habit is that everyone has become selective. "Students just pick the books for reading and getting good grades to pass the examination and later find a good job but hardly anyone grabs the literature books to enhance his knowledge," Ditta said adding 'now education is pretty common these days but knowledge is rare'.

The fundamental reason behind decline of reading culture is the ongoing inflation, he contended. Quoting an incident, he said a young kid came to his stall thrice as he was interested in a book but the mother took her to an adjacent stall of a food where they both had cold drinks and snacks," Ditta said smilingly.

He told 90 percent of his customers were students while just 10 percent of customers visited the stall for literature books, novels, magazines, or cooking books etc. "I am doing a government job as well and purchase books from Lahore and other jumbo book stalls at a cheap rates and offer my customers a 50 percent discount and sometime even lesser than that. "But still I find them reluctant to purchase books. Customers leave the stall saying price is too high," he added.

"There was a time when I used to sell a good amount of books every month but now I only manage (to sell) just few in a day, " he said. Daily Times, however, found that a few dedicated patrons for these shops still exist. Mahwish, a housewife, while purchasing a couple of Urdu novels said that she had been a vivacious reader eversince her childhood. "It has everything to give me guideline of settling the domestic issues, nurturing the kids and how to struck a balance between home and outside affairs," said Mahwish adding reading Urdu digest guided her understanding the child psychology.

Another English fiction lover, Rafea Manan, said there was a mustiness and familiarity to old bookshops that isn't always found in the glossiness of larger bookstores in the city. "I can have some unique centuries old books from here," she said. People like Mahwish and Rafea, however, are in minority. Many of us no longer have the time to be huddled-in with old books.

The prognosis for these old books stalls is not good; they are fighting an existential battle - when many believe they might very well already have lost.