The University of Peshawar (UoP) is grappling with a deepening economic crisis as its deficit has now reached a staggering Rs1.5 billion, drawing little attention from the administration or provincial government.
Despite the salary for the month of July being paid in advance on June 20 due to Eid, the university has failed to pay its employees, leaving them in financial distress.
The university needs around Rs360 million, including pension payments for retired employees, to meet its salary obligations.
An official of the varsity pointed out that the total annual budget of UoP is Rs5 billion, with Rs360 million required monthly for pensions and salaries.
However, the current deficit stands at Rs1.5 billion according to official estimates and Rs2 billion as per unofficial estimates.
One of the major obstacles in timely salary disbursement is the requirement to fulfill technicalities when sending salaries to the Accountant General (AG) office.
The treasurer has been unable to handle the process efficiently, leading to routine delays in salary payments, as shared by another official.
The situation has also sparked resentment among Class IV employees, who have expressed frustration over the regular delays in receiving their salaries.
On a different note, Caretaker Minister for Higher Education, Law, and Justice, and Pro-Chancellor, Justice (Rtd) Irshad Qaisar, chaired a high-level meeting at Governor House Peshawar to review budget approvals for various universities. During the meeting, the budgets of Abbottabad University of Science and Technology, Kohat University of Science and Technology, and Khushal Khan Khattak University Karak were thoroughly examined and approved based on the previous Senate meetings’ vetted minutes.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 4th, 2023.
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