KARACHI, Firstyear classes in the seven newly opened government colleges in the city will begin on Nov 15 and Nov 14 is the last date to get admission.

According to the directorgeneral of colleges, Sindh, Prof Rafique Ahmed Siddiqui, admissions to these colleges are still being given in first-year classes and all those matric students who could not get admissions under the centralised admissions policy to public sector colleges, could get admissions to these colleges before Nov 15.

He said that principals of these colleges had been empowered to give admissions to their respective colleges.

When he was informed that the last date for submission of enrolment forms by firstyear students would be expiring in a few days, Prof Siddiqui explained that the directorate had requested Board of Intermediate Education Karachi (BIEK) authorities to accept the enrolment forms of students being given admissions to these seven colleges.

He said that despite the expiry of the last date of enrolment, students given admissions to these seven government colleges would be enrolled with the board, because the admissions process at these seven colleges had also begun late.

New colleges Mentioning the seven new colleges where admissions to first-year classes would continue till Nov 15, he said that these included Jan Mohammad Brohi Goth Govt Degree Girls Arts, Commerce and Science College, Gulshani-Maiymar; Govt Girls Degree College, Safoora Goth; Govt Girls Degree College, Buffer Zone; Govt Girls Degree College, Surjani Town; Govt Girls Degree College, Punjabi Club, Kharadar; Govt Girls Degree College, Pak Colony and Govt Boys Degree College, Metroville, SITE.

Answering a question about arrangements to provide required teaching staff at the new colleges as their SNE (Sanctioned New Establishment) is yet to be approved by the government, he said that the matter pertaining to these colleges’ SNE would be taken up in December and the teaching staff at these colleges had been arranged on a temporary basis.

He said that with the opening of seven new colleges in the current academic year, the number of public sector colleges in the city had increased to 131.

Admitting that the number of students doing their matric exams from the Karachi board was increasing with each passing year, Prof Siddiqui said that the provincial education department, with a view to accommodating maximum number of matric students, had established 12 new government colleges in the past two years — five in 2008 and seven in 2009 — in the city while planning was under way to open more colleges.

There are 260 government colleges in Sindh.

Of them, 131 are located in Karachi, 57 in Hyderabad, 34 in Sukkur, 18 in Mirpurkhas and 20 in Larkana.