Underconstruction Campus at Chota Gala Volume 1 No. I March - June 2012 Patron Professor Dr. Manzoor Hussain Khan, (SI) (Vice Chancellor) Advisor Prof. Dr. Muhammad Rafique Khan Chief Editor Dr. Asad Hussain Shah Editor Miss Amna Anwar The Honorable Chancellor and H.E. The Saudi Ambassador Visit New Campus Members of the University Abdul Ghafar Khan Abdul Hamid Imtiaz Ahmed Miss Kanwal Mahmud Mr.Irfan Qasim Inside Messages General Visits Meetings Honors and Awards Appointments Co-curricular activities Research projects Research Publications Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan, President/Chancellor and H.E Abdul Aziz Abrahim Al-Ghadeer the Ambassador of Kingdom of Saudi Araibia at New Campus site 2 THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT NEWSLETTER www.upr.edu.pk WORD FROM THE FOUNDER CHANCELLOR It is the subject of immense pleasure that The University of Poonch is publishing its 1st News Letter. I feel privileged to be the 1st Chancellor of the University of Poonch Rawalakot. The People of Azad Kashmir in general and of Poonch in particular, have a glorious history of making sacrifices for the freedom of their homeland. The demographic, geographic, social, and economic circumstances of people of the region stipulated the establishment of a complete university that could not only address the plunge of education for the youth of the region but that could also build up an aggravated and skilled manpower in academia and research. I am convinced that the University of Poonch will accomplish the brilliance in all its curricular and co-curricular endeavors. I look forward to the graduates of the University to print a rousing impact on national and international market of professionals. I congratulate the Vice Chancellor, Chairmen, Faculty, staff and students on the establishment of the University of Poonch. I urge them to work in harmony and lay the building blocks in to strong foundation of the new university. Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan The Founder Chancellor and President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT NEWSLETTER THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT 3 www.upr.edu.pk www.upr.edu.pk From The Vice Chancellor I congratulate the students, faculty, staff and community for being awarded with a premium educational institution in the name of “The University of Poonch, Rawalakot”. It is my privilege to be the founder Vice Chancellor of the University. I congratulate directorate of student affairs for publishing first Newsletter of the university. The establishment of premium seat of learning is a great challenge for all concerned to lay down its intellectual foundation. The region has produced high caliber leadership in the field of education, science, medicine, religion and politics. The people of Azad Jammu & Kashmir in general and of Poonch region in particular have a legacy for offering great sacrifices for the freedom of the homeland. The up-gradation of the existing Faculty of Agricultural Sciences which is already offering state of the art instructions and conducting world class research, solving problems at local, national and international levels into a full-fledged general university was need of the hour. Azad Jammu & Kashmir has enjoyed the status of having highest literacy rate in the country. It is expected that the university will become hub of quality education, research, social, economic and cultural activities that will attract not only youth of the State of Azad Jammu & Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan but also intelligent and proficient students from all over the country and Islamic World. I am confident that the graduates of the university will make a significant impact at national and international levels. I would like to urge faculty, staff and students to work together to evolve this university into a dynamic institute to play distinctive role in furthering nation’s, economic, social and cultural development. At the same time we are committed to ensure that our activities benefit the communities which we serve and engage. Teaching & learning are associated processes. Teaching is formal and structured instructions, whereas learning has a social and emotional element to it. I would urge the faculty to engage the students into learning process. We at University of Poonch Rawalakot would be committed to achieve quality education, research, academic environment of tolerance, peace, friendship, humanism and most important-discipline. Good luck everybody and God bless you. Dr. Manzoor Hussain Khan (SI) Founder Vice Chancellor 4 THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT NEWSLETTER www.upr.edu.pk in to a full fledged charted University. The First Visit of the president advised the faculty to work hard now for establishing the foundations of the new university Chancellor to The which should become a renowned educational institute of Asia. He expressed his determination University of to discover financial opportunities for the new university. Mentioning his continuous efforts to Pooch Rawalakot overcome the issues in acquiring the status of full fledged charted university, the President said President of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar that it was his commitment with the people of the Yaqoob Khan visited the University of Poonch region to develop an educational city in the heart for the 1st time since the notification of the of Poonch. The main objective of all these efforts is to facilitate the youth of the region to acquire higher education at their door step. The president urged on the faculty to launch such activities which can bring an evolutionary change in the socio- economic circumstances of the people of the area. Sardar Yaqoob Khan shared with the audience that new building will be constructed very soon and funds requested by the The president Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob Khan being concerned company have received by Faculty members and Non -Academic staff at been released and there is Poonch University no obstacle in this regard now. Addressing the audience, the president independent university on 11 March 2012. The congratulated the faculty and civil society on president received a warm welcome by the Dean the appointment of new vice chancellor, Dr. Faculty of Agriculture Rawalakot along with faculty Manzoor Hussain Khan. The president mentioned members, students and civil society, as he arrived in the plausible reputation of vice chancellor as an the campus. While addressing the faculty members, academician and potent leader in administrative Sardar Yaqoob Khan congratulated them faculty aspects. On this occasion, The Dean faculty of members, students, community and people the Agriculture, Rawalakot, Dr. Syed Dilnawaz Gardezi region for the evolution of Faculty of Agriculture briefed the president about the strengths and achievements of the Faculty of Agriculture, Rawalakot. The president also inaugurated the newly built multipurpose building of the campus. The President of AJK, Sardar Yaqoob Khan and Sardar Abid Hussain Abid stepping forward to inaugurate the multipurpose building at Faculty of Agriculture, The The president inaugurating the multipurpose building at The University of Poonch, Rawalakot University of Poonch, Rawalakot THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT NEWSLETTER THE UNIVERSITY OF POONCH RAWALAKOT 5 www.upr.edu.pk www.upr.edu.pk Professor Dr.Manzoor Hussain Khan (SI) joins the University of Poonch as Vice Chancellor Dr. Manzoor Hussain Khan was appointed Vice and valuable services Chancellor of the University of Poonch. Prof. Dr. to premium educational Manzoor H. Khan S.I, a distinguished academician institutions, Professor Dr. and engineer, was born in 1944, received Khan was awarded the early education in Military College Jhelum, got prestigious civil award engineering degree from UET Dacca and became Sitara-i-Imtiaz in ‘2004 by Lecturer, Asst Prof and Assoc Prof at the University the President of Pakistan. of Engineering and Technology Lahore. Dr Khan served as Assoc Prof at the King Saud University, Professor Dr. Khan served Riyad and Pakistan Atomic Commission for a brief as Rector Foundation period before joining the GIK Institute as consultant University, Islamabad in June 1992. Because of his pre-eminent status as [since ’08] which is a an engineer-academician, he was associated with multidiscipline University offering BA, B Sc, MA, M the planning and development of the GIK Institute Sc, MS, M Phil and PhD in Engineering, Management, and later as Professor in ‘93, Dean in ‘95 and Pro- Education, Arts, Sciences and Medicine. Since March Rector in ‘95. As Professor and Dean he supervised 2012. Professor Dr. Khan has been appointed Vice the development of state-or-art laboratories in the Chancellor of The University of Poonch, Rawalakot. field of engineering and his involvement in major research projects is substantial. He also made Vice Chancellor’s “WELCOME” at the significant research contributions in understanding the behavior of engineering materials and offered University of Poonch After being appointed Vice Chancellor of The consulting advice to a number of industrial University of Poonch, Dr. Manzoor Hussain arrived concerns. He was Pro-Rector (Acad.) of the GIK at University on April 2, 2012. The Vice chancellor Institute during its crucial formative period of received a warm welcome by the Dean of the Faculty, development [‘95-‘99] and he planned, developed Dr. Syed Dilnawaz Ahmad Gardezi, Chairmen, Faculty and started the graduate programs at the Institute. members, Non Academic staff and Students. While He was working as Dean Students Affairs when on the request of the President