Punjab to support students from other provinces, Education Minister

Lahore – Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat has announced that the Punjab government will support students from other provinces who wish to study at universities in Punjab. He also revealed that a Semester Exchange Program for students from other provinces is expected to be launched soon while Daanish Schools will also be established in Balochistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan.

The announcement came during a meeting between Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat, Punjab Communications and Works Minister Sohail Bharth and a delegation of students from various universities in Balochistan. The delegation also included students from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

During the meeting, students praised Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat for their education reforms. Students from Balochistan humorously remarked that they wished to have Punjab’s Chief Minister and Education Minister lead their province for six months so that Balochistan could also achieve similar progress.

The students discussed Punjab’s development projects, education system and other public initiatives with the provincial ministers. They also requested the introduction of a Semester Exchange Program to which the Education Minister responded that, subject to the approval of the Chief Minister, the program could be launched from next year.

Many students from Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan expressed their desire to enroll in Punjab’s universities. In response, Rana Sikandar Hayat assured them that students from Balochistan would be offered admissions through scholarship programs in Punjab’s universities. He personally recorded the details of interested students during the meeting.

The minister said that more than 15,000 students from other provinces are currently studying in educational institutions across Punjab. He added that he has a deep emotional connection with Balochistan and would be proud to see more Baloch students pursuing higher education in Punjab.

Rana Sikandar Hayat also revealed that he has been in regular contact with the Education Minister of Balochistan to launch the Google Education Program in the province with both ministers having held seven consultations over the past few months.

He further assured students that Punjab would also support learners in distance education. He emphasized that if students from Balochistan or any other province wish to study at any university in Punjab, the provincial government will extend full support.

The minister also announced that Daanish Schools will soon be established in Balochistan, Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. He noted that 1,900 students from Gilgit-Baltistan are currently studying in Punjab on scholarships while the 10 percent admission quota for Balochistan students in Daanish Schools is also being increased.

Rana Sikandar Hayat said that Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has a special commitment to supporting the youth of Balochistan and other provinces. Therefore, students from other provinces have been included in scholarship programs, university admission quotas and the Punjab laptop scheme.

At the end of the meeting, Rana Sikandar Hayat and Sohail Bharth presented one laptop each on behalf of the Chief Minister of Punjab to every student in the visiting delegation.