AIOU education workshop from March 24
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Islamabad : Directorate of Regional Services, Allama Iqbal Open University, Rawalpindi region will conduct the workshop for MA Education programme from March 24.
The workshop is being arranged for the enrolled students of MA Education for the course code 584 (Planning Population Education) and course code 506 (Development Education).
The intimation letters regarding workshop coordinator and venue of the workshop have been sent to all the students by post at their given addresses, said an news release issued here Friday.
Students who have not received their intimation letters can contact the regional campus Rawalpindi in the main campus of the university. All re-appear students who want to attend this workshop are advised to contact regional campus to obtain formal approval for attending the workshop.
Source: The News
AIOU offers BS in Environmental Science
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Islamabad : Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) Department of Environmental Science has offered four-year BS in Environmental Science for Spring semester 2010.
The programme has been developed in view of the emerging needs relating to environmental education and awareness. According to an estimate, the institutions and universities in the country meant for environmental education collectively produce about 300 experts on environment annually as against a demand of 13,000 professionals. The scheme of studies is modern, comprehensive, innovative, balanced in terms of theoretical and practical component and at the same time at par with the HEC standards.
Environmental Science is an emerging science, inter- disciplinary in nature integrating natural and social sciences in a holistic study of the world.
It is a mission oriented study seeking valid and contextual knowledge, skills, attitudes and their impartial, fair and balanced application to the contemporary world.
Environmental conservation, alleviation of poverty and sustainable development are high on the agenda of the country and the developing world.
Source: The News
AIOU announces schedule for admission forms
Islamabad, March 19: The Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) will receive admission forms for spring semester from matric to PhD level till Saturday.
A press release issued by the university on Thursday said the date for submission of forms will not be extended. The university has announced admissions to BBA/BA/BCom, intermediate and Al-Lisan-ul-Arabi programmes across the country and in Middle East.
Admission forms and prospectus for all programmes are available at the main campus of the university in Sector H-8, Islamabad and its 36 regional campuses/offices and 116 coordinating offices across the country. APP
AIOU daily wagers protest over job insecurity
ISLAMABAD: Around 1, 000 daily wagers of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) held a mini-march at premises of the university on Tuesday to press for their regularisation. AIOU Employees Welfare Association (EWA) organised the march.
The march started from the main gate and culminated in front of the Vice Chancellor’s (VC) office. The participants were holding placards and chanting slogans against what they called discriminatory contractual arrangement signed with them by the university’s administration.
They demanded President Asif Ali Zardari, who is also AIOU Chancellor, listen to their demands and regularise them.
The contract, which is attendance based, envisages that if there are four weekly holidays in a month and national holidays also fall in that month, daily wagers would not be entitled to any pay. “Is it our fault if there are days off in a month?” asked a protester.
EWA President Malik Saeed told journalists that they were hopeful that the elected government would listen to their demand and regularise them.
Most of the daily wagers are working at the university for the last several years but do not have job security. They can be fired any time without any justification.
Rashid Ahmed, a daily wager, said, “We do not have any legal cover. If we lose jobs we cannot go to any court of law as contractual arrangements does not protect us.
He queried that why students were charged fees, when there were so many holidays in a year. “The policy should be clear. Either charge fees from students excluding holidays or regularise us and pay us as you charge students,” he added.
The protestors vowed to hold more demonstrations till their demands were met.
Source: Daily Times
No financial cut on funds for universities: Gilani
ISLAMABAD—Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani Tuesday said there would be no cut on the budget allocated for the universities despite the serious financial crunch the country was facing. Addressing Vice Chancellors of around 70 public sector universities from all over the country here at the Prime Minister House, Gilani however asked them to improve the quality of education to match international standards.The prime minister said the government has allocated an amount of Rs 31.57 billion for the education sector during the current budget and said the Education Policy of 2009 envisages an allocation of 7 percent of the GDP by 2015.
“We will ensure that funds for education, particularly the higher education, are available,” Gilani said and added “even under extreme financial crisis we have made a commitment not to cut education budget.”He said he has also got an assurance from his finance minister that there would be no cut in the education budget and the universities can continue with their capacity building and future expansion programs.
He said the Education Policy was finalized in consultation with all the stakeholders and aims at taking the country forward and help it meet all future challenges.
Gilani said the government accords top priority to education and health sectors and would ensure that enrollment is tripled over the next six years. He vowed to take education to the doorsteps of the people and said more universities and their campuses would be opened in far off areas of Balochistan and Sindh.
The prime minister urged the Vice Chancellors to work with the government and help exploit full economic potential of the country.
He however pointed to the need of improving the quality of education being imparted by these universities as their rating has declined internationally.The prime minister said the success of the country depends on the success of its education sector and said it was vital to help the country overcome the challenges it was facing.
He said the private universities were doing better than the public sector ones in imparting modern technologies and this needs to be emulated by the public sector universities.
Source: Daily Mail
AIOU announces Matric result
Islamabad: Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) has announced the results of final examinations of Matric programme for the Semester Spring, 2009.
Controller of Examinations Hafeez-Ullah said that the result intimation cards are being sent by post to the Students at their given addresses.
The students who do not receive the result intimation card upto March 5, are advised to contact their nearest Regional Office or Superintendent (Matric result section) in the main campus of University in Islamabad personally or on his phone number 051-9057320 to get the duplicate result card. The students can also download their result from the website www.aiou.edu.pk of the university.
Source : The News Tuesday, February 23, 2010
AIOU admissions till March 5
Islamabad: Admission forms for Semester Spring 2010 of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) for Matric to PhD level in the country can be submitted up to March 5.
While in the Middle East countries, the admissions of BBA/BA/BCom, Intermediate and Alisan-ul-Arabi programmes will be received till the said date.
Admission forms and prospectuses for all the programmes are available at the main campus of the University in Sector H-8, Islamabad, and at its regional campuses and coordinating offices.
AIOU daily wagers: We wish there were no holidays
ISLAMABAD: The reluctance of Allama Aqbal University (AIOU) administration to disclose the actual number of daily wagers has forced Employees Welfare Association (EWA) to start their volunteer registration currently working in different departments.
It was earlier estimated that around 450 daily wagers are working with AIOU but a huge gathering of them on Friday leads to another estimate that their number must be around one thousand.
They gathered in the university’s auditorium listening to the EWA’s leadership. “EWA was asking for a little contribution of Rs 20-30 for printing of banners in favour of our own demands but I did not raise my hand because it is difficult for me to spare even this smaller amount since I need it for van fare,” says Asadullah Awan, who earns Rs 283 per day on attendance base.
Malik Saeed, the EWA president, said, “A lower division cleric (LDC), Malik Abrar, was shown the door after 13 years of service as a daily wager when he could not make it to office for seven days due to heart attack.”
Contractual arrangements: A copy of the contract obtained by Daily Times reveals highly discriminatory terms and conditions for daily wagers. The first clause of the contract reads: “The appointment will be purely of occasional nature, terminable at any time without any notice and/or any reason thereof.”
“Even an illiterate gardener might be told the reason of his termination but despite obtaining graduation degree, I can be fired without knowing the reason behind it,” Shamasur Rehman, an LDC, lamented.
Clause 4 of contract further fuel financial insecurity of daily wagers in an unprecedented manner as it reads: “The Audit Officer will release payment only on production of certificate of actual attendance along with the claim.”
“I wish there were no holidays either on religious or national account. The month of February of 2010 will consume seven days, since out of 28 days there are four Sundays. A day was eaten up by Kashmir Day and another would be by Rabiul-Awwal,” Saeed Bashir, a daily wager, said.
Sher Asif Satti, EWA general secretary, said daily wagers suffered while others prayed and celebrated religious rituals.
The EWA president said if President Asif Ali Zardari did not pay heed to regularization of daily wagers, the EWA would be forced to stage protests.
The government has established a review board headed by Senator Raza Rabani to analyse the regularization policy. Recently, the government has regularized 4,000 workers of Civil Aviation Authority.
Source: Daily Times Saturday, February 20, 2010
AIOU daily wagers life
By Vidya Rana
ISLAMABAD: Around 450 workers of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU), most of them engaged for over a decade, are daily wagers. They are contracted for 89 days and after gape of one day their contracts are renewed.
AIOU Deputy Registrar M Ismail Fahmi told Daily Times that an employee hired in scale two received Rs 253 daily, however if he didn’t show up in the office for any reason he won’t be paid.
He was reluctant to share the AIOU’s policy about daily wagers. He said only the registrar, Ilyas Ahmed, could tell the rational behind this policy. The registrar was unavailable at office and on phone for comments.
Zahid Majeed, AIOU Academic Staff Association general secretary, said the administration did not advertise posts for daily wagers, so there was no criterion for their hiring. In any case, the fate of daily wagers rested on the mood of their immediate supervisors since they could be hired or fired even without a short notice.
“A lower division cleric has been working for the last seventeen years on daily basis but has not been regularized as yet. When AIOU is using his services for so many years, why don’t they regularize him? Muhammad Shafiq, an LDC, has completed his 17 years of service and had he been a regular employee, he would have been entitled to pension after 25 years of service,” he said.
Employees Welfare Association President Malik Saeed said lower division clerics (LDC) were the backbone of the institution.
“Daily wagers are paid on attendance basis so they are not entitled to get money on Sundays or even on national holydays. The international Labour Day is also a doom day for AIOU’s daily wager since they do get a day off, but without money,” he said.
A naib qasid said, “When I go home I am not sure if there will be a tomorrow for me in the office. Insecurity prevails.”
“They don’t raise their voice fearing that the administration might terminate them. It is inhuman not to regularize those who are working for years. Daily wagers’ experience is not counted so they cannot get jobs on the behalf of the previous record of their service,” Prof Rasheed Khalid of QAU lamented.
A female in IT department said that she had worked as a daily wager in AIOU for three years before getting a regular job. “ Being a daily wager, I always felt insecure,” she said.
There is another side of the story: when some are being exploited, others are intimidating.
Director Regional Services (DRC) Ali Asghar Hussnain was hired as a daily wager after his retirement for 89 days. It was an exception that this post was widely advertised, against which AIOU received more than 30 applications.
Sources said the applicants were PHD degree holders but none of them was called for interview other than Hussnain. “Now he is working on this post for one and a half years as his contract is renewed on every 90th day after a gap of one day,” a representative of AIOU Academic Staff Association said.
He said the contract was renewed after 89 days with a gap of one day because upon completion of 90 days of service, the university was bound to give the employee some benefits.
Dr Saqib Riaz, of the AIOU, said advertisement, short listing and interviews were mandatory for regular appointments. “But daily wagers usually come from backdoors. They are put in offices by some influential people.”
Source : Friday, February 19, 2010 Daily Times
AIOU announces BEd exam results
ISLAMABAD: Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) has announced the results of final examinations of Bachelors of Education (BEd) programme for the Semester Spring 2009, said AIOU Controller Examinations Hafeez-Ullah in a press release on Thursday.
He said result cards were being sent by post to the students at their given addresses.
The students could also download their result from the website www.aiou.edu.pk, he added.
Source: Daily Times Friday, February 19, 2010
