KARACHI: After being established in the early years of the 1960s in Karachi, the Islamic College is facing severe challenges after its transfer from its historic location. The academic and administrative situation of the old Islamic college has deteriorated over the years, with a decrease in admissions in the intermediate first year from 70 to 80 percent.
The general perception and division of faculties in Science, Arts, and Commerce in the Islamic Science and Islamic Arts and Commerce College are due to the negligence and indifference of the Sindh government’s college education department. Now, like other colleges in Karachi, this college is also awaiting an unexpected or surprise visit from the neglectful Sindh Chief Minister.
Although the college administration of the Science College has tried to provide some assistance through their resources, the situation of the Islamic Arts and Commerce College has worsened due to the lack of interest from the authorities.
These revelations about the transfer of the Islamic College have come to light during Express’s visit to the college’s new premises after a year.
It should be noted that the former Islamic Trust established the Islamic College near the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam in 1962, which was later taken over nationally in 1972. Later, a dispute over this complex arose a few years ago, which led to the transfer of the college from its complex in Karachi to North Karachi.
The transfer of the Islamic College took place in December 2012. When Express visited the Islamic Arts and Commerce College during the morning, it was found that there was no library in the present building because it had not yet been moved from the complex. Now, the college is being run without a library.
In addition, last year, there were no desks or furniture for students, teachers, and staff to sit in the college at the outset. However, principal Professor Ali Raza Shah stated that 30 desks were provided to the students and a few desks were placed in each classroom.
According to the principal of the college, there was no water in the college for a year, which was now available after much effort a few days ago. In response to a question, it was revealed that there were a total of over 400 admissions in the intermediate first year this year. However, according to the principal of the college, there were 2,600 admissions in both faculties.
It should be noted that there is a government Islamic Arts and Commerce College (Evening) on the first floor of the same building, where no student comes to study, and there are no furniture available for them. All the rooms on the first floor of the college are empty and have been closed with locks, and the staff only comes to the college in the afternoon.
Other faculty members too mentioned similar issues within the college. They revealed that while the college had a well-established library in the old building, there were only 9 shelves available in the new library, and the rest of the books were shut in the complex.
Moreover, the former building, which housed a world-class zoology museum, is now in a state of neglect, with only 6 showcases from the museum being placed in storage. This situation has led to a significant decrease in the number of admissions in the Islamic Science College.
The students’ attitude towards the college is that it is over 20 kilometers away from the old complex due to traffic and costs them a lot of money to travel back and forth every day. Therefore, if the government provides shuttle service for them, their problem will be solved.
For now, only a few old students come to the college, but they also come here for practical purposes because it is not possible to come every day, and the facilities in the college, including the library, are not the same as last year.