Karachi: In the Federal Urdu University, formal proceedings have been started for the selection of a new and permanent vice-chancellor after about one and a half years.
The meeting of the search committee of the university has been convened on Wednesday, December 6, which will be chaired by HEC chairman Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed himself as the senate of the university has also appointed him as the convener of the search committee. The members of the committee have also been formally informed in this regard.
A senior officer of HEC Islamabad told Express that the period (timeline) for the preparation of advertisement and execution of related matters by the search committee in connection with the selection of the vice chancellor will be determined in the meeting and Efforts will be made to ensure the selection process of the Vice-Chancellor for the stipulated period.
Moreover, the procedures for receiving applications and scrutiny criteria from the aspiring candidates applying for the post of Vice-Chancellor will also be determined, while in this regard, the search committee will be able to form its own sub-committee and take support from it. Which will be able to hand over the data to the committee by scrutinizing, evaluating and shortlisting the applications as per the criteria set.
According to a senior HEC official, since the convener of the search committee is the chairman HEC, it is likely that this sub-committee will also consist of HEC officials.
It should be noted that the search committee was finalized by the Senate of Urdu University in a meeting chaired by President Dr. Arif Alvi on November 20, 2023, according to which, apart from the convener, Dr. Nadira Panjwani, Shahid Shafiq, Dr. Sarosh Lodhi, Urdu University Apart from Senator Shakeelur Rahman, representatives from the university, Dr. Akhlaq Hussain and Dr. Kashif Rifat, are also included in the nominations of teachers.
It should be remembered that the former Permanent Vice-Chancellor of the Federal Urdu University, Dr. Athar Atta, resigned in July 2022 after working in the position for 2 months because he wanted to run the university from Canada, which he was not allowed to do. Earlier, former Vice Chancellor Dr. Altaf Hussain was removed on court orders in July 2019 and the university as a whole has been running on ad hoc basis since then.