KU’s decision to continue two-year degrees defies HEC, Sindh govt, SHC

Setting aside the provincial government’s decision, Sindh High Court’s verdict, and Higher Education Commission of Pakistan’s (HEC) directives that declared the two-year degree programme unauthorised, the Academic Council of the University of Karachi (KU) last week approved the continuation of the traditional two-year BA, BCom and BSc degree programmes in the affiliated colleges of the varsity.

In response to the KU’s announcement, the HEC once again has issued alerts on its official website and social media accounts, informing the students that two-year degree programmes will not be recognised. “Students and parents are advised not to waste their time and money by enrolling in unauthorised degree programnes. These programmes [two-year] have been phased out because of quality concerns.”

Owing to this confusing situation, thousands of students of Karachi are unable to get admissions to degree programmes in the academic year 2021, and around seven months of the current session have already lapsed.

HEC decision

On November 17 last year, the HEC had asked Pakistan’s educational institutions to discontinue the two-year bachelor’s degree programmes, saying that the commission would not recognise any such programmes undertaken after the academic year 2018. The commission had expressed concern in the notification that those two-year programmes were still being offered by varsities and degree awarding institutes and their affiliated colleges.

“In this regard, varsities are directed not to offer admissions in the two-year BA, BSc programs and that the degrees shall not be recognised by the HEC for students enrolled in those programs after December 2018,” the notification read. The commission also posted a message on its official website, warning the students not to seek admissions to two-year degree programmes.

Resistance

However, the faculty members and administration of several public sector varsities of Sindh decided to resist the new policy announced by the HEC. On February 4, the chief minister’s adviser on universities and boards, Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, addressed a press conference with faculty members of the KU and said that any HEC proposal to introduce the four-year degree programme was tantamount to attacking the provincial autonomy.

A few months later, however, Khuhro showed no interest in the continuation of the two-year degree programme at the colleges.

On April 5, however, Sindh’s college education department in a public notice that appeared in local dailies stated that with effect from March 31, universities had been given a grace period of three months to conclude the final examinations of the BA, B.Sc and BCom programmes.

The notice also stated that the rejection of the two-year BA, BSc and BCom programmes by any institution was not the responsibility of the college education department, which had taken the decision in compliance with the Sind High Court’s orders in suit No. 1243 of 2015 and CMA 10499/2015, 10993/2015.

In case of admissions to illegal and phased-out programmes, the students would be responsible for all risks and costs or any associated loss incurred in the conventional BA, BSc, and BCom programmes after December 31, 2018.

In the wake of the provincial government’s decision, the University of Sindh and several other general universities granted provisional admissions in the HEC associate degree programme.

Refusing to budge

However, the KU chose not to implement the associated degree programme in its affiliated colleges. This is why more than 150 affiliated colleges could not announce admissions to their degree programmes for the academic year 2021 owing to which thousands of students in Karachi, were unable to get admissions.

According to the Sindh Professors and Lecturers Associations, the HEC has already abolished two-year degrees but the KU administration has not agreed to implement the decision taken by the commission. However, the KU’s Academic Council formed a five-member committee during its April 10 meeting to seek a legal opinion on the provincial government’s advertisement about the two-year bachelor’s and master’s degree programmes.

Professor Jamil Hassan Kazmi was appointed as the convener of the committee while Dr Zaheer, Dr Nasiruddin Khan, Dr Anila Amber Malik, and Dr Naeem Khalid were its other members. To date, no one knows what sort of legal opinion these five members received from legal experts.

Misleading news

Last week, a Karachi-based local Urdu daily after the vice chancellors’ meeting with HEC officials held on July 2 published a news story that claimed that the commission had agreed to defer its two-year associate degree and BS programmes in affiliated colleges. “The commission will soon notify its decision,” the news read.

On July 6, however, the HEC issued a clarification statement stating that all news items circulating in the press and electronic media regarding the postponement of the four-year undergraduate and two-year associate degree programmes were ‘misleading and incorrect’. “Both the programs are intact and shall continue as earlier”.

It was also clarified that during the meeting between VCs and HEC officials, it was decided that a committee of VCs would convene a meeting in the 4th week of July for three days for a debate on the issue.

“A summary would be taken to the commission highlighting the factual position and requesting for allowing those who are not in a position to implement up to June 30, 2022; while those who have started implementation of the policy may continue diligently.”

But the day next, the said newspaper published another news item claiming that the HEC had confirmed the postponement of its undergraduate and PhD policies. On the bases of such news, the KU Academic Council took the decision for continuation of the traditional two-year degree programmes in its affiliated colleges.

Perplexed colleges

Prof Qazi Arshad Hussain Siddiqui, the principal of the Pakistan Ship Owners Government College and member of the KU Academic Council, in a letter written to the CM, the universities and boards department, college education department, KU and other bodies, stated: “The future of more than eighty thousand students of this city awaiting for seeking admissions at graduation level [was] unfortunately not given due consideration and once again a decision has been taken to continue the existing BA, BSc & BCom in the colleges affiliated with the Karachi University just on assurance claimed to be received through WhatsApp which has now been contradicted by the HEC itself on its Twitter account as well as [in] an advertisement in local dailies.”

He added that when the decision of continuation of the two-year degree programme was raised at the Academic Council meeting, he pointed that the public colleges shall still not be in a position to offer admissions as they were duty bound to follow the directives of the college education department and HEC that restrained them from following the two-year degree programme.

“I also pointed out that the SHC judgment was binding on the Sindh government since neither the government nor the College Education Department have filed any appeal against the judgment. It is very unfortunate that no due consideration was given to proposals for starting the associate degree program and BS Program in the affiliated colleges resulting in a chaotic situation for the students waiting for admissions. The non-seriousness of the Karachi University Academic Council can be ascertained from the fact that the sub-committee constituted for the implementation of the associate degree programme from the next year has no member taken from the affiliated govt colleges.”