Ehsaas scholarship project state guardianship for the deprived: Alvi.

ISLAMABAD -- President Dr. Arif Alvi on Thursday said that the Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship Project is a state guardianship for the deprived, as it is responsibility of the state to counter elitism by facilitating people in employment as well as education and health sectors.

He said this while addressing the 27th Vice Chancellors Committee meeting held in connection with Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship project. The heads of public sector universities across the country attended the meeting at HEC Secretariat. Many of them joined through video link from their respective campuses.

Dr. Alvi regretted that students from low income families were forced to quit education after matriculation or intermediate due to financial constraints. If only three per cent of students acquire college education, 97 per cent of the country's intellect is neglected, he asserted.

He stressed that the state is responsible for countering elitism by taking such measures as the launch of the Prime Minister's Ehsaas Programme. Elaborating his own experiences, he highlighted the importance of merit and need-based scholarships in a student's life. He said it is a major development that provision of educational opportunities to undergraduate students is focused under this project.

The President urged the Vice Chancellors to take a 'quantum jump' for enhancement in quality of education in order to make country's youth productive in terms of provision of service to the society. He stressed the need for ensuring fairness and transparency in the execution of Ehsaas Undergraduate Scholarship Project.

Appreciating the gender balance maintained in the project, he said it is a social obligation not to let the women's productivity and contribution to society go waste. He regretted that, according to a report, 80 per cent of women graduating from medical institutes do not...