The federal government has proposed slashing the Higher Education Commission’s budget by half to Rs30 billion for the fiscal year 2022-23.
The previous budget was Rs65.25 billion, according to the Finance Division, while the projections for the grants pertaining to HEC are around Rs30 billion.
According to media reports, the Finance Division has sought a budget statement from HEC for the year 2022-23. The HEC, on the other hand, seeks Rs100 billion to cover expenses and make sure that research is conducted smoothly.
HEC officials have stated that universities across the country were already facing financial troubles due to the budget cuts by the PTI government, adding that additional cuts would bring higher education to a standstill.
An HEC official told media that the HEC would not be able to give grants to public universities from the proposed provisional indicative budgetary ceiling and estimated budget for 2022-23.
Statistics indicated that there are 150 public sector universities functioning in the country with funding being provided to 38 research entities and 12 centres of advanced studies.
