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CORONA STRUCK KNOWLEDGE CORRIDORS OF GILGIT-BALTISTAN
The monster that had gone unleashed in a certain meat bazaar of Wuhan city of China posed unprecedented menaces to the fabric of civilization by threatening the global stability. In a very little span of time from about November 2019 to March 2020, it has been knocking ever alien door across the globe. While people were relating it with any corporate or martial conspiracy for the new global order, it had started wrecking havoc upon the developed and the developing nations equally and the developed nations who were not reckoning that such situation ever can defy their mighty infrastructures of health and economy, facing the shattering of the preparedness myth. The global scenario started changing and as expected, the poor and the developing third world was to receive the major part of the iceberg.
The COVID challenge has been the biggest one for the relevant sectors of Gilgit-Baltistan. The early months of year 2020 had been nightmarish obviously due to the lack of preparedness and resources as well as the irresponsible attitude of the people. Fortunately, the people were observed possessing strong immune systems especially among youth. The elderly patients suffered much and many lost their lives. The positive cases rose to hundreds though but with the lockdown the cases were relatively controlled and the maximum cases remained not much compared to the population.
When the situation grew worse, the owners/ association of private educational institutions decided to open the schools with full SOPs but they were not allowed to do so. They met the provincial head of the government and appealed for help. A special grant was promised for them as the compensation of fees with an urge that the parents shall pay a meagre 20 – 30 % of the fees, the school administration shall bear 10-20% and the remaining shall be paid by the government. This proved a timely hope but the government never paid that amount. As a result, many private setups succumbed to financial pressure and closed down. The financially well-off schools sustained barely but if the similar lockdown/ closure is imposed again this year, that shall prove detrimental to many other institutions.
The second problem was that of seeking alternative ways to continue the learning process. The online dissemination of lectures was the possible solution to some extent. The following strategies were opted wherever it was possible:
- Home assignments / Tasks / Projects.
- Soft video lectures in memory sticks.
- Teaching through YouTube channels / e. Learning.
- Live Teaching through Learning Management System (LMS) / Zoom/ Google Meet.
- Promotion to next grades without exams
Every strategy had its own pros and cons. To cut short the long story, the situation hitherto, has been a bit that of sustenance but there is dire need of PREPAREDNESS for similar challenges in future otherwise the corona struck corridors of knowledge are in the peril of being witnessed deserted and barren. The biggest institution, the Karakoram International University, alone has a 7000 plus student body. The youth which is 63 % of the population of the country cannot be left on the mercy of ignorance. May Allah SWA protect us all from the drastic befalls of CORONA.
Rashid Hussain
The writer is lecturer at Department of Media & Communication at Karakorum International University, Gilgit
About Author
Islamabad, January 9, 2023: Karakoram International University (KIU), Gilgit published a book entitled Mountain Studies: Understanding and Managing Mountains for People and Nature”. The book was an outcome of a project under the U.S. – Pakistan University Partnerships Grants Program, funded by United States Government through the United States Educational Foundation in Pakistan (USEFP). The project aimed to promote education for sustainable mountain development through curriculum enrichment and capacity-building.
The project engaged six universities – COMSATS University Islamabad Abbottabad Campus and Women University of Azad Jammu & Kashmir Bagh from Himalayas; University of Baltistan, and Karakoram International University Gilgit from Karakoram; and University of Chitral and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University Sheringal Dir Upper from Hindu Kush.
The book is intended for those with an academic, scientific, and practical interest in mountains, particularly the Hindu Kush-Karakoram-Himalaya (HKH) region of Pakistan. Primarily, it serves as a resource book for those engaged in teaching and learning about mountains and associated resources. It provides an overview of the key aspects or resources of mountains from a background information to, classification, current status. It also highlights the likely challenges and future directions for conservation of mountain resources.
The book will be a useful resource for teaching as a core course in the mountain universities of Pakistan’s HKH region or in similar geographical settings elsewhere, where possible, or by integrating it partially into existing curricula of relevant subjects.
Following an introduction to the HKKH region of Pakistan, this book contains 14 chapters, arranged under three broader thematic areas:
- Physical landscapes and associated challenges – covering mountain geography, Glaciology, land use, land cover changes, mountain hazards, and climate change;
- Life and resources – describing mountain ecosystem services, mountain forests, rangelands, wildlife, medicinal and aromatic plants and Agroecology; and
- Governance, markets, and common goods – sustainable mountain tourism, socio-economic transformation, governing the commons and resource management systems in the highlands
Sixty co-authors representing numerous disciplines from the six partner universities in the HKH region of Pakistan contributed to the chapters. A considerable number of images have been used across all chapters to portray important elements. More than 650 references provide the reader with an invaluable resource to gain first-hand knowledge of mountains in the Asian highlands.
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Vice-Chancellor Karakoram International University, Prof Dr Attaullah Shah has said a sports complex and a sports and tourism academy will be established in the varsity’s main campus under the umbrella of Kamyab Jawan programme. Addressing a press conference at VC secretariat, he said the Higher Education Commission had allocated Rs200 million for the project. He said the project would bring about revolutionary changes in the field of sports in Gilgit-Baltistan. KIU Sports Academy will leave no stone unturned to provide the facilitation of sophisticated equipment and trainers for professional training on most modern lines. He further reiterated that KIU was making every effort to ensure that the athletes from GB won at least two to three medals in the Asian Championship 2025.The KIU vice-chancellor said the varsity strived to provide both educational and research facilities to its students. Karakoram International University will strive to train players in Skiing, Mountaineering, Mountain Biking and Polo and other games.
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Education
High-Performance Computing Lab was inaugurated at the Department of Computer Sciences, Karakoram International University,Gilgit
On 13th September 2021 at KIU, a high-performance computing laboratory was inaugurated by the provincial Minister for IT in presence of the Vice-Chancellor of Karakorum International University and Director Mountain University Program, University of Central Asia (UCA). This high-tech lab has been sponsored by AKDN-University of Central Asia under its Mountain University Program and will be a valuable addition to research activities in Artificial Intelligence for both the faculty and students at KIU. Dr. Aftab Ahmed Khan, HoD Department of Computer Science in his speech thanked the donors and AKU for their generous support. He also apprised the audience about the Department of Computer Sciences’ current national and international research projects. He highlighted the importance of this lab in contributing to future research of faculty and students. Mr. Aliyor, Director Mountain University Program, UCA congratulated the audience, especially Dr. Aftab, VC KIU, and the faculty of computer sciences on the successful materialization of this laboratory.
While addressing the audience he mentioned that the completion of this project is not the end rather this is the start of the possible future partnerships between KIU and UCA for establishing strong academic and research relationships between the two mountain universities. Shaukat Ali Khan, Global Head of IT, AKU, also participated online in the inauguration ceremony. He ensured his institution’s full support for collaborative work with KIU in the future. Mr. Hussain Shah appreciated the efforts of KIU and the Department of CS for the recent research activities and achievements. He highlighted the importance of IT for E-Governance and showed interest to consider ideas from KIU for his future initiatives. He further assured KIU that his ministry will establish a state-of-the-art Computing Laboratory at the department of computer sciences. In the end, Vice-Chancellor thanked all the visiting guests, faculty, and management staff who put their efforts to make this event and lab successful.
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