ISLAMABAD Dec 03 (TNS): Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) has officially notified provision of free Matric education to the students of Baluchistan and Federally Administrated Tribal Area (FATA) from the next semester, spring 2018.
According to the University’s Registrar’s department, the formal decision to this effect was taken by the University’s Executive Council at its 106th meeting on the recommendation of their Finance Committee.
This is first-time in the history of AIOU that free education at the secondary-level has been made available for marginalized or less-developed areas of the country.
The Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Shahid Siddiqui while making an announcement to this effect here last week had stated that the AIOU being Mega University in the public sector fulfills its national responsibility, catering the educational needs of less-far-flung regions, setting aside its financial gains.
Proving free education to Baluchistan and FATA’s students is meant to supplement the government’s efforts to upgrade educational facilities in the country and to bring maximum number of the people in the educational net.
The University is already providing free education to neglected sections of the society that include disabled persons, prisoners, drop-out girls and transgender group. Now they are going to take care of economically less-privileged areas of the country, by making the Matric education free for the students of Baluchistan and FATA, in the first –phase, the VC said.
They had already waived off tuition fee for the internally displaced persons (IDPs) of the tribal areas, in wake of counter-terrorism operation, undertaken by the Pakistan army. The University is also providing scholarships to the deserving students to ensure that nobody should be left without education because of financial constraints.
