Govt junks PoK degrees, students a worried lot

Rifat Mohidin

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, May 17

The students from Kashmir who are studying in colleges in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) are a worried lot as the authorities have said the degrees are not valid in India.

Every year, more nearly two dozen students from Kashmir seek admission to MBBS in PoK medical colleges on a special quota provided by its government. This year, however, the University Grants Commission has cautioned the students who intend to apply.

In a recent letter by the All India Council for Technical Education, it asked the Secretary, Higher Education, and the general administration department in the Valley to tell the students to refrain from enrolling in the institutions in PoK.

The issue came up after the cases of 25 students had reached the Indian High Commission in Islamabad for attestation.

The letter has said the Central government does not recognise the courses.

“Therefore, the students are cautioned and advised against taking admission in any college, university or technical institution in any territory under the illegal occupation of Pakistan, including the so-called AJK and Gilgit Baltistan, which are not currently recognised in India,” the advisory said.

In the Valley, students say the motivation to apply in Pakistani colleges or PoK is the six per cent scholarship provided to the students of Kashmir.

“It is only to get a scholarship. Otherwise, the MBBS degree in any part of the world is costly and even in Kashmir we don’t have many options. As the relations between India and Pakistan have worsened in recent years, students are slowly giving up the idea,” said Sana Zehra, who had applied for admission in Pakistan last year but could not get through and is again planning to apply this year.

Many students already studying in PoK are anxious.

“We do not know what to do in the middle of our degrees,” said a Kashmiri student studying in PoK on the condition of anonymity.

A government official said a less number of students from the Valley go to PoK to pursue MBBS. The official said students prefer colleges in mainland Pakistan.

“This will not have much impact as most of the students go to main Pakistani cities and not PoK,” the official said.

“Earlier, 150 students from Kashmir would go to Pakistan for studies every year, but now the numbers have gone down.”

The official said most of the students go on a scholarship and have to almost “pay nothing for the MBBS degree”.

The students are usually recommended by separatist leaders, which eases their visa and other processes.

“There are students who apply themselves and follow the procedures,” the official said.

In February 2018, the National Investigation Agency had claimed that they had seized letters of recommendation from the houses of separatist leaders who had been sending letters to the Pakistan High Commission for issuance of visa to students.

Meanwhile, the Private Schools Association Kashmir has condemned the directive, saying it negates the basic principle of South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

“India is part of SAARC and all educational institutes in all countries should be treated on a par. One cannot pick and choose educational institutes in a particular region,” said GN Var, head of the association.

Separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq called the directive “unfortunate politicisation of education”.

“It puts the career of those studying there in jeopardy and uncertainty,” he said.

UGC cautions students

• A government official said a less number of students from the Valley go to PoK to pursue MBBS. The official said students prefer colleges in mainland Pakistan
• Every year, more nearly two dozen students from Kashmir seek admission to MBBS in PoK medical colleges on a special quota provided by its government. This year, however, the University Grants Commission has cautioned the students who intend to apply