Senate body discusses revival of student unions after 50 years

The Senate Education Committee on Wednesday deliberated at length on the revival of student unions after half a century and maintained that its revival should be improvised according to new trends and mindset of the young generation. The Senate Committee on Federal Education and Professional Training met on Wednesday under the chairmanship of Senator Irfan ul Haq Siddiqui at the Parliament House. The committee while taking up the Bill titled The Islamabad Capital Territory Student Union Bill 2023 introduced by Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi deliberated that since long serious issues related to discrimination and injustice to students obstructing their social and academic life remained un attended leading to dire consequences such as abductions and killings. Senator Bharamand Khan Tangi said that these issues can only be resolved through collaboration of the management and the elected bodies and a bridge between the administration and students. The committee was of the view that in order to address these issues prevailing in the student community and ensure democratic and inclusive atmosphere for healthy debate and culture intellect a Student Union should be established in the Islamabad Capital Territory which will play its role as nurseries for training future leadership and will provide forums to students for constructive activities, civic life, understanding or Rights, obligations and their enforcement. The committee chair Senator Irfan Siddiqui emphasised that the revival of a student Union should be drafted in a way that it must not become a hub of politics and must be above party lines. He said the revival must be improvised in a way which is trendy and facilitates the students at its maximum. The committee discussed various procedures of elections in order to save the concept of Union from being politicised. The committee chair deferred the voting on the bill up till the next meeting. The committee gave time to the members to thoroughly deliberate on the bill and submit appropriate amendments. The committee chair also sought a comprehensive report from the Ministry on the same. The committee also directed the HEC to give its viewpoint on the matter. The matter of regularisation of the services of the daily wage teachers were also discussed in the meeting. The chairman committee extended the time for report and implementation by 2 weeks with the hope that the matter will be resolved with special focus on all the teachers to be regularised as per the decision of the higher courts. It was also directed by the committee chair that the minimum daily wages given to the teachers be Rs35000. The committee chair said that the matter is pending since 2018 and non implementation of the courts orders may be characterised as negligence, irresponsible behaviour and non seriousness of the Ministry, and hoped that the matter may be solved at its earliest. On the matter of re-employment of contractual Montessori Teachers (BS-17) the committee was apprised that the ministry will accommodate contractual montessori teachers in upcoming projects under FDE as per feasibility with the posture that the Ministry of Education and FDE stands by them in letter and spirit. The committee also discussed the procedure, criteria and practice for rechecking of papers of various boards’ examination under the FBISE. The chairman FBISE briefed the committee that once a paper is evaluated it cannot be re-assessed. The chairman committee stressed whether this practice is in favour of students or not and further inquired on the international practice on this point, he said that the right of re assessment should not be taken away from the students. The committee deliberated on circumstances the paper should be re-assessed in the larger interest of students. The committee chairs inquired on the number of complaints reported for re-checking to which the chairman FBISE replied that around 10 to 14 pc of complaints are made for re-total. The chairman FBISE explained the commmittee the entire mechanism of marking and checking of the papers and the services they are providing to students in this regard. He said that the FBISE upgraded the entire system and now it is computerised and the ratio of complaints has been declined he further said that after the upgradation of the system the concession of re-checking should also be removed.