HYDERABAD, July 24 : President Asif Ali Zardari inaugurated Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Research Chair and performed the groundbreaking of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Convention Centre at University of Sindh in a ceremony held at Sindh Chief Minister’s House Karachi on Friday evening. A university spokesman said here on Saturday that the President appreciated the efforts made by the University of Sindh for setting up of the Research Chair to pay tribute to Shaheed Benazir Bhutto. The establishment of Chair, the President said, would enable the scholars to do research on political philosophy of Shaheed Benazair Bhutto and her struggle for democracy in the country. Students and faculty members would also take benefit of the facility for their research work.

He said that education was a key area which needed special attention as paid by the present government.
The president also appreciated the idea of the University of Sindh for setting up of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Research Chair in different countries.
He also appreciated the efforts of the University for establishing campuses in remote districts of the province aimed to provide higher education to the youth within their reach.
Speaking on the occasion, the Vice Chancellor University of Sindh Professor Dr. Nazir A. Mughal said,” the university aims to establish Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Chair in various countries keeping in view her philosophical objectives for the future generation of Pakistan and most of developing nations. The university intends to spread her message in all progressive Islamic countries like Morocco, Egypt, Jordon, Malaysia and Central Asian countries and set up Benazir Bhutto Research Chairs there”.
He said that the objectives of setting up of Chair in different Muslim countries mainly were to disseminate the progressive thought, works and political struggle of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto for women of the world.
The Vice Chancellor also informed the President about the establishment of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Foundation and said that this foundation would promote, encourage and provide assistance to its faculty, staff and students in their research activities.
He said that this non-profit organization would provide a venue by which discoveries, inventions, process and work products of the Chair and of the University of Sindh along with the research contribution of the Chair, can be created and transferred from the campus to the city to the nation and to the world.
In addition to that, he said that research foundation will also support women and other students financially to enroll for M.Phil and Ph.D programmes as well as to provide financial support to promising poor girls and women to enroll for research studies.
The Vice Chancellor while announcing donation of Rs.100, 000 from his own pocket for the foundation appealed to the gathering to come forward for donation to the foundation.
He informed that that a proposal would also be moved and will be placed before the Syndicate of the University for allocating at least Rs. one million from self finance programme, which to be generated purely from students contributions.
The Vice Chancellor requested President Asif Ali Zardari for allocating special fund of Rs. 300 million for repair of roads of the University, setting up of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto Chairs in different countries and construction of a residence for visiting scholars who will visit the chair for their research work.
The Vice Chancellor also lauded the efforts of the present government for establishment of campuses and universities in different parts of the country and added that the University of Sindh has become grand mother of various institutes. He said that this honour has been earned by the university because of implementation of 1972 Education Policy announced by Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
He said that whenever Pakistan Peoples Party came into power it had given priority to the education and recent steps taken by the government of Pakistan Peoples Party for establishment of Mirpurkhas, Dadu and Badin Campuses, Engineering College at Larkana and Khairpur and up-grading of Chandka Medical College to the level of University are the landmark achievements in the field of education which will not only fulfil dream of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto for providing higher education at doorstep of less privileged masses of Sindh but these steps will no doubt, go a long way in spreading the light of education in the region in coming time.
Among others, the Governor Sindh Dr.Ishratul Ebad Khan, Chief Minister Sindh Syed Qaim Ali Shah, Speaker Sindh Assembly Nisar Ahmed Khuhro and Senior Education Minister Pir Mazharul Haq were also present on the occasion. APP