On a rainy Monday some months ago, the University of Balochistan (UoB) wore a deserted look as faculty members, protesting against the non-payment of salaries, brought academic activities to a standstill. Everyone, from professors to janitorial staff, was gathered outside the main gate on Sariab Road — the main artery that runs through the city of Quetta.

At the protest, the teachers started collecting donations and selling vegetables to demonstrate their helplessness. Seemingly embarrassed by this show of vulnerability, the provincial government swung into action and within the next few days, released a month’s salary.

Several months on, the crisis persists — if anything, it has only grown worse. And while the staff’s salaries have been paid for now, each month’s payroll brings a new struggle.

The root of the problem

Instead of waiting for another question, he posed the next one himself, before going on to explain why the university has been unable to generate significant revenue. “The major income of the varsity was accumulated through private BA and MA examinations, which have been abolished by the Higher Education Commission’s (HEC) new policy discontinuing the two-year programmes. Despite the meagre source of revenue, the number of pensioners is increasing, as well as other liabilities that take up a larger portion of the budget.”

The treasurer added that countries such as India and Bangladesh spend 4-4.5pc of their budget on education, while Pakistan spends only about 1.5-2pc. “This is the reason our universities are in deep crises across the country, including the UoB,” he said.

Like a broken record

Back in 2013, I covered the UoB crisis for a local media organisation in Quetta. On Dec 3, 2013, teachers and staff of the varsity commenced a begging bowl campaign, to protest against the government of Balochistan for not providing adequate financial resources to them. Back then, the teachers and staff also complained, as they are now, that they had not received their salaries for over six months.

While acknowledging that this is an old issue, Jamaldini explained that the most recent crisis had been brewing for the last two years.

The 18th Amendment to the Constitution transferred significant powers to the provinces, including higher education. In this regard, Jamaldini said, “Whenever we go to the HEC, they ask us to go knock on the doors of our own provincial government because they [are responsible for] transferring our funds via the National Finance Commission (NFC). And then, we do not get it from there under the pretext of lack of funds. The funds do not trickle down to us from either side. Unlike Punjab and Sindh, Balochistan does not have a provincial HEC.”

While the amendment ordered the establishment of higher education commissions in all provinces, Balochistan still does not have one, nor has the provincial government, including the nationalist government of Dr Abdul Malik Baloch, made any serious efforts to establish it.

On April 17, during a meeting of the University Finance Commission (UFC), Dr Kaleem Barech — president of the Academic Staff Association of UoB — said: “The provincial government of Balochistan agreed to release a Rs380 million package for the UoB, which was later slashed to Rs150m because Hafiz Abdul Majid, the then-secretary of colleges, was opposed to it. This happened, despite the varsity being an autonomous body. But the bureaucracy wants to run it like they run government schools in Balochistan. We have not even received the promised 150m.”

For his part, Majid denied creating any hurdles in the allocation or disbursal of the varsity’s funds. The former secretary of colleges explained that during a meeting, the chief minister had pledged Rs350m for the varsity, adding that, “I would not object even if he provided Rs1 billion”.

“The varsity administration and staff could not present their case,” he told Dawn.com over the phone. “They had already obtained Rs30m from the HEC, and required Rs15m. So, I only argued that they should be given the required Rs15m instead of the total amount.”

According to Majid, he had told the varsity administration to come up with justifications for the funds, as their issue was a never ending one. “The varsity has to put its own house in order, otherwise their demands will never end.”

From bad to worse

The varsity administration and its staff, however, deny this is the case. Dr Barech, the staff association president, demands that under the Balochistan Universities Act 2022, teachers, students, employees, and their associations ought to be included in the policymaking bodies.

“The varsity is an old institution; it is the responsibility of the government to resolve its unending crisis. The teachers are mentally perturbed and disappointed [due to non-payment of salaries], which is affecting their academic and teaching services,” he said.

Over the months, the crisis has gone from bad to worse. Many of the teachers and other employees have been living hand to mouth. Some, including professors, are unable to send their children to school as they cannot afford the fees.

One such employee is Abdul Hakeem Baloch.

He joined the UoB during its first year as a security guard. “I have never seen such a crisis throughout my career here,” he said. “I am going to retire in a year or so, and my salary is now Rs27,000. I have been living hand to mouth. I have to take on debts to cover my family’s expenses. Shopkeepers and friends have stopped giving me loans now.”

A father of five, the angst and discomfort on his wrinkled face was apparent. He forcibly laughed while discussing his economic woes. “I only bought clothes for two of my younger children, and that too with Zakat money,” he recalled. He held his ears as if asking for forgiveness for taking Zakat, which he believed he was not entitled to. “I have kept it hidden from my wife, especially from my children; we would always give Zakat instead of taking it. We are living a miserable life and it’s as if the government has vanished.”

Like other employees, the professors too had anxiety etched on their faces. The crisis also taught them all a harsh life lesson — many of their friends had stopped meeting them. “Now we know who our friends are and who are not,” one of them said in jest. “We are teachers, who depend on our salaries to run affairs, we do not have other sources of income.”

Among chaos, education suffers

Crying foul

In the midst of the crisis, Daily Intekhab, a local Urdu paper from Balochistan, reported on the malpractices and corruption of Vice Chancellor Rehman stating: “The vice chancellor, between 2020 to 2022, has received Rs8.3m and and an additional Rs99,000, respectively as salary and allowances.”

When Dawn.com contacted VC Rehman, he said that he was not feeling well and that the treasurer, Jamaldini, should be contacted for any queries regarding the crisis instead.

This begs the question: If the varsity head himself is not bothered about the varsity’s issues while actively benefiting from its salary and perks, what interest will others take?

Officials’ apathy

Dr Barech regrets that besides the government’s negligence, it has also been choosy and stingy in providing funds. “For instance, in its 2022-23 budget, the Balochistan government presented its total expenditure to be Rs614bn, while only Rs2.5bn was provided in the form of grants to 11 public universities. This is highly insufficient and inadequate to meet the universities’ financial requirements.”

The crisis has reached a point where survival is becoming more and more difficult. As I was about to leave, Bugti told me the worst of it: “Ameer Jan Buledi, an employee of UoB, had to pull his children out of school as he could no longer afford their school fees. Unfortunately, he recently died of a heart attack.”

The header image is AI-generated via Shutterstock.