‘Best University Teacher’ award bestowed upon 40 lecturers
Islamabad:January 29:In recognition of their outstanding performance, as many as 40 lecturers from universities across Pakistan were presented Best University Teacher Award for the year 2014 in a graceful ceremony organised by Higher Education Commission (HEC) on Thursday.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad Khan was the chief guest on the occasion. Each winner was awarded a certificate and a cash prize worth Rs100,000. HEC Chairman Professor Dr. Mukhtar Ahmed was also present on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion, Governor Sardar Mehtab Ahmad underlined the significance of higher education and research for socio-economic growth of the country.
“The nations, which evolve a futuristic approach towards development and invest in quality higher education are the ones who progress,” he said.
He observed that a huge investment was made on higher education sector during the last decade, particularly on establishment and expansion of universities, human resource development, increasing access to higher education, faculty development, etc. adding that there is a need for improvement in quality of education and research.
Sardar Mehtab said that though HEC and the government are fulfilling their responsibility to expand and strengthen the universities, yet there is dearth of skilled faculty. Referring to overall social and national uplift, the Governor lamented that the credibility crisis has incurred a great loss to the country. He emphasized upon excessive social research, saying that universities conduct social researches and governments execute them after evaluating their effectiveness in order to achieve national goals.
Earlier in his address, HEC Chairman Dr. Mukhtar Ahmad urged the teacher community to focus on character building of Pakistani youth in addition to acquaint them with latest trends in education and research, as he said the lack of character building steps lead to social ills like terrorism, corruption, etc.
The chairman congratulated the teachers who won the awards and urged them to pay attention to community service, as he said a good teacher is the one who contributes to social development. He also emphasized upon them to give the youth a hope for a bright future. He said that the Commission has played a remarkable role in the development of higher education sector. He highlighted different HEC initiatives for improvement of quality of education and social integration, with special focus on improved access, relevant research and gender equity.
HEC Acting Executive Director Dr. G. Raza Bhatti briefed the audience about the criteria adopted for selection of teachers for the award. He said the selection was made on the basis of teachers’ qualification, teaching skills, research output, professional development and community service.
The award winners from public sector universities include Dr. Shehzad Khalid, Professor at Bahria University, Islamabad; Dr. Shamsul Qamar, Professor at Comsats Institute of Information Technology, Islamabad; Assistant Prof. Dr. Khurram Khurshid, Institute of Space Technology, Islamabad; Dr. Samina Malik, Associate Professor at International Islamic University, Islamabad; Dr. Khalil Ahmed, Professor at Korakoram International University, Gilgit; Dr. Shaheen Akhtar, Associate Professor at National Defence University, Islamabad; Dr. Syed Abdul Ghaffar Bukhari, Acting Head of Islamic Studies Department at National University of Modern Languages (NUML), Islamabad; Dr. Jamil Ahmad, Assistant Professor at National University of Sciences and Technology, Islamabad; Dr. Attiya Yasmin Javid, Professor at Pakistan Institute of Development Economics, Islamabad; Dr. Tariq Yasin, Deputy Chief Scientist Department of Metallurgy and Materials Engineering at Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Islamabad; Dr. Tariq Mahmood, Associate Professor at Quaid-E-Azam University, Islamabad; Dr. Uzaira Rafique, Professor at Fatima Jinnah Women University, Rawalpindi; Dr. Hamid Mukhtar, Associate Professor at Government College University, Lahore; Dr. Mamuna Ghani, Dean and Chairman Department of English, Islamia University Bahawalpur; Dr. Muhammad Sarwar Khan, Professor at University of Agriculture, Faisalabad; Dr. Intzar Hussain Butt, Assistant Professor at University of Education, Lahore; Engr. Dr. Riffat Asim Pasha, Professor at University of Engineering and Technology, Taxila; Dr. Muhammad Sharif, Professor at University of the Punjab, Lahore; Dr. Muhammad Younus, Professor at University of Veterinary of Animal Sciences, Lahore; Dr. Raza-UR-Rahman, Professor at DOW University of Health Sciences, Karachi; Dr. Nasir Afghan, Assistant Professor at Institute of Business Administration, Karachi; Dr. Abdul Razaque Shaikh, Professor at Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences, Jamshoro; Dr. Arabella Bhutto, Assistant Professor at Mehran University Institute of Engineering & Technology, Jamshoro; Dr. Khurshid Ahmed Abbasi, Chairman Department of Pediatrics, Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Medical University, Larkana; Dr. Zia-Ul-Hassan-Shah, Assistant Professor at Sindh Agriculture University, Tandojam; Prof. Dr. Naeem Tariq Narejo, Chairman Department of Fresh Water Biology and Fisheries, University of Sindh, Jamshoro; Dr. Muhammad Arif, Assistant Professor at Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan; Dr. Abdul Haleem Shah, Chairman Department of Biological Sciences, Gomal University,Dara Ismail Khan; Prof. Dr. Habib Ahmed, Tenure Professor Department of Genetics, Hazara University Mansehra; Dr. Attaullah Shah, Assistant Professor at Institute of Management Sciences, Peshawar; Dr. Muhammad Tahir Sarwar, Assistant Professor at Khyber Medical University, Peshawar; Dr. Muhammad Azim Khan, Associate Professor at University of Agriculture, Peshawar; Dr. Amir Nawaz Khan, Dean Faculty of Life & Environmental Sciences, University of Peshawar; Dr. Zahoor Ahmad Bazai, Assistant Professor at University of Balochistan, Quetta; and, Dr. M. Ishtiaq, Assistant Professor at Mirpur University of Science and Technology, Mirpur.
The teachers from private sector universities who received the award include Dr. Humaira Nadeem, HoD of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Department of Pharmacy, Riphah International University, Islamabad; Dr. Ahmed Faisal Imtiaz Siddiqi, Professor at University of Management and Technology, Lahore; Dr. Syed Zahoor-ul Hassan Zaidi, Assistant Professor at Hamdard University, Karachi; Mr. Jameel-un-Nabi, Professor at Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute of Engineering Sciences and Technology, Topi Sawabi; and, Dr. Muhammad Abdul Wasim, Assistant Professor at Sarhad University of Science and Information Technology, Peshawar.The news.
