Islamabad: (Parliament Times) Sardar Masood Khan, President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, participated in the Chancellors’ Meeting of Public Sector Universities which was convened by Dr. Arif Alvi, President of Pakistan.
In the meeting, President AJK talked about the state of the five public sector universities in Azad Kashmir have made impressive progress in many fields and were now focusing on improving the quality of education. “The emphasis on quality was meant to make Azad Kashmir universities competitive nationally and regionally”, he said. The President also said that steps have been taken to minimize interference in the university matters and promoting a culture of merit in the appointment of academic and non-academic staff at various levels.
President AJK thanked President Arif Alvi for his timely initiative for the promotion of cutting-edge disciplines like Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, Big-Data, nanotechnology and quantum computing. This initiative, if implemented effectively and systematically, would make Pakistan and Azad Kashmir a regional and global hub for new technologies, he added.
Sardar Masood said that the Azad Kashmir universities were also introducing new technologies like Artificial Intelligence (AI), blockchain, cloud-computing, Big-Data, robotics and 3D-printing. He also informed other Chancellors that conscious efforts were being made to promote close linkages between the universities and the industries, regular job fairs have been held to enhance the employability of the graduates. At the same time, he said, universities have been encouraged to hold seminars on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to help predict, project and prepare students and faculty for the emerging trends in job markets so that they may harmonize their teaching and curricula accordingly.
The President of AJK said that because of growing tourism in AJK, special attention is being given to the disciplines of hospitality, hotel management and tourism.
AJK universities, he said would also work towards introducing the most relevant disciplines in the region, such as industrial biotechnology, mineral technology, horticulture and floriculture.
The meeting was attended also by the Governors of Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh, as well as Mr. Shafqat Mahmood, Federal Minister for Federal Education and Professional Training.