The decision of the Punjab government allow students to sit for the Bachelors in Commerce (B Com) examination as private candidates has put the interests of province’s education giants at stake, who are trying to woo Punjab Education Minister Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rahman to their side. While the new open-door policy in B Com education has opened great opportunities for poor students, the private mafia is in a lurch and is trying to get the decision reversed.
The decision, which favours poor candidates, was lauded throughout the province since it would rid the students of paying thousands of rupees to private institutions set up to conduct B Com classes. According to sources every year around 1 lac students across the province appear in the in the B Com exams and most of them belong to the far flung areas. The privatisation of the B Com was approved by the Punjab University Academic Council and Syndicate and renowned teachers and educationists also approved of this decision.
According to a survey conducted by Pakistan Today, a famous group of colleges in Lahore that tutors B Com students charges Rs 59,500, including miscellaneous charges, the fee goes up to Rs 74,500 per year. Another group of colleges that has branches all over the province charges Rs 65,300 per year. In comparison to this, the students will now have to pay only Rs 1,850 to register for their exams.
Many education centres, operated by private organisations, had sprung up all over the province and reportedly charge thousands of rupees from the students, who used to join them only to get registered for the exams. With the facility to now appear privately without the requirement of being a student of any institution, the students have heaved a sigh of relief.
However, the private sector is now lobbying against this decision and is reportedly trying to convince the education minister to get the decision reversed. A meeting between the mafia and the minister was held last week in his week, according to sources, who added that the education minister had also now proposed the idea of reconsidering the decision.
It is important to mention here that earlier a couple of months ago, PU administration privatised the B Com examination under the auspice of the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif.
Students have said they would launch a movement if the decision is reversed.
“Earlier, we used to pay thousands of rupees in fee to private institutions and now we are only required to pay Rs 1,850 as examination fee to PU. This is a great decision,” said Waseem, a B Com student, adding “the government is better off not reversing the decision”.
“There are a few difficult subjects in which the students can need tutoring, but they can easily join academies for that. Private institutions were robbing students and their parents and they students still had to join academies because the teaching was never up to the mark,” Shumila, another B Com student said.
EDUCATION MINISTER: “Private associations have been trying to meet me on this issue and I will hold meetings with them,” Punjab Education Minister Mujtaba Shuja-ur-rahman said, adding that he thought that privatisation was a good move. “The associations are claiming that there are some technical subjects that the students cannot cover on their own,” he said, adding “we are looking into the matter but till then, the decision is final”.
