Punjab Governor Stresses Students Role In Promotion Of Knowledge-based Economy

Governor Punjab/Chancellor UAF Muhammad Baleeghur Rehman has said students are precious asset to the country and they must play their role for promotion of knowledge-based economy in Pakistan by switching over from academic knowledge to applied sciences

FAISALABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 6th Mar, 2024) Governor Punjab/Chancellor UAF Muhammad Baleeghur Rehman has said students are precious asset to the country and they must play their role for promotion of knowledge-based economy in Pakistan by switching over from academic knowledge to applied sciences.

He was addressing the 27th Convocation of University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) here on Wednesday in which as many as 16,229 students of the year 2021 and 2022 including 248 PhDs scholars were awarded degrees whereas 42 students were decorated with gold medals, 94 with silver medals and 26 students were conferred bronze medals.

The governor said the youth should understand the vicious social media campaign launched with ulterior motives to destabilise the country. They must understand the message between the lines and reject the impact of such negative propaganda which may prove harmful to the nation and the country, he added.

He appreciated the efforts of UAF and said that it has taken a bold step by establishing National Incubation Centre, which would provide an opportunity to the passing out students to earn precious foreign exchange by exporting their IT related skills. He also paid tributes to Vice Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan and said that he should upgrade the university syllabus to introduce modern technologies in our rural economy.

He said improvement in world ranking is indicative of the sincere efforts of the Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan and his team. "However, it was very strange that despite being an agrarian economy, we are still importing many agri products," he added. In this connection, he particularly mentioned the import of Moringa (Sohanjna) powder which is being used in our society for the last many centuries but the developed countries are exporting it under brand Names and in an attractive packing.

Earlier, in his welcome address UAF Vice Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said that the university had attained prominent position in international rankings. According to QS ranking, the UAF is ranked at 12th in Asia and 1st in Pakistan. He said that more than 7,000 students are being given financial assistance in the university so that they could continue their journey of knowledge. He said that currently 33,000 students were studying in the university. This number will exceed 60,000 by next 15 years. Keeping in view, that work is being carried out to provide infrastructure and other facilities. He said that the UAF had prepared a ten-year agricultural policy plan for the Punjab government, which will strengthen the agriculture sector.

He said that about 50 percent of students currently studying in the university are women. He said that the UAF takes admissions under a special formula which includes rural and urban quota of students from different districts.

"We have to develop agriculture on modern lines so that the goals of food security can be achieved by overcoming problems of water scarcity, soil fertility, seed and market," he said, adding that the UAF had also set up a new Faculty of Arts and Literature, which will enable further development.

Controller of Examinations UAF Muhammad Tariq informed the details about the passing out students.

Pro-Vice Chancellor/Dean Agriculture Dr. Muhammad Sarwar Khan, Deans Dr. Masood Sadiq Butt, Dr. Qamar Bilal, Dr. Farzana Rizvi, Dr. Khalid Mushtaq, Dr. Ijaz Ahmad Bhatti, Dr. Anjum Munir and others also spoke on the occasion.

Earlier, the Governor Punjab Muhammad Baleegh-ur-Rehman flanked by UAF Vice Chancellor Dr. Iqrar Ahmad Khan also distributed degrees and medals among university students.