HEC told to take action against universities lacking quality facilities.

KARACHI -- The Higher Education Commission (HEC) is directed to check the mushroom growth of institutions of higher learning and take action against the universities and their affiliated institutes that lack quality facilities.

The directives were given by the senior adviser of the Federal Ombudsman Secretariat, Syed Anwar Hyder, during a recent visit to the regional centre of the HEC in the metropolis.

According to a press release, he urged the HEC to play more effective role to uplift standard of universities so that Pakistani students could avail education and employment opportunities around the world without facing difficulties.

He said that there were several complaints that some private sector universities had opened campuses without getting HEC approval and fulfilling quality standards that resulted into difficulties and complications for over 10,000 students, who had moved courts in the regard.

He said that the ombudsman secretariat had also received several complaints against universities and it was looking into these complaints and appropriate actions would be taken to provide relief to the complainants.

Mr Hyder appreciated the role of HEC in providing verification, attestation and other important facilities and services to a wide range of students from undergraduate to post-doctoral level.

He stressed the need of establishment of statuary institutions to regulate primary and secondary level education in the country so that entire educational system from basic to higher level could be uplifted and standardised at par with developed nations of the world.

'Developed and emerging nations around the globe allocate funds amounting to five to six per cent of their GDP for education and Pakistan should also increase its budgetary allocation for education to ensure provision of sufficient resources to education sector,' he observed.

He...