Punjab Education Minister Rana Sikandar Hayat has announced 1,000 Google Career Scholarships for young people in Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) on Wednesday.
The scholarships will give students free access to Google certification courses. These courses can help young people develop skills for the digital job market.
The announcement was made during a scholarship ceremony at Karakoram International University.
The Punjab government also distributed more than Rs600 million in scholarships among 500 students from GB.
Scholarships for GB students
Speaking at the event, Rana Sikandar Hayat said that the scholarships were a gift from Punjab Chief Minister (CM) Maryam Nawaz for students in GB.
He said that the talented students from all parts of Pakistan should have access to Punjab’s educational resources. He further added that the scholarships would be given on merit.
The minister also stated that the government wanted to provide young people with useful education and skills. He added that students should not be divided based on their province or political views.
Will Punjab give GB students laptops?
Rana Sikandar Hayat said the 1,000 Google Career Scholarships would allow GB students to complete internationally recognised Google courses without paying fees.
The courses could help students gain skills for digital jobs and remote work. He also said that laptops would be sent to students in GB after students requested them.
Will Punjab scholarship programme reach AJK?
The minister also announced that Punjab would also expand its scholarship programme to Azad Jammu and Kashmir(AJK) soon.
He said that the government would not ask students for votes in return for scholarships or laptops. He described education support as a responsibility of the state.
PEF issues budget for teachers’ salaries
Recently, the Punjab Finance Department has released a Rs14 billion budget for the Punjab Education Foundation (PEF).
It eased the way for the payment of pending salaries to teachers associated with the foundation.
According to sources, the released funds include an allocation for the salaries of PEF teachers. After the release of the budget, teachers are expected to receive their outstanding salaries.
After the funds were released by the Finance Department, the relevant authorities started preparations to move ahead with the salary disbursement process.