As many as 267 students of University of Agriculture Faisalabad got laptops at laptop distribution ceremony under the fourth phase of Prime Minister Laptop Scheme at the New Senate Hall.

The ceremony was arranged by Directorate of Financial Assistance and University Advancement and was chaired by State Minister for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali. UAF Vice Chancellor Dr Muhammad Iqbal Zafar, HEC Regional Center Lahore Director General Nazir Hussain, MPA Tahir Jamil and Director Financial Assistance Dr Hafeez Sadaqat were the guests of honor on the occasion. Under the phase as many as 6000 UAF students will get the laptops.
The state minister said that the future of country reined in the hands of youth and they were future builders. He said that the quality education was imperative to steer the county out of difference crises. He said that N-league government was taking revolutionary steps to promote education research culture, provision of state-of-the-art health facilities, and uplift of agriculture sector. He said the Prime Minister Youth Internship Program, Laptop scheme, and scholarships etc were hallmark steps that will bring the prosperity in the country.
He urged the scientists to develop out-of-the-box solutions to redress the grievances of lay man. He also said that agriculture was backbone of our economy, contributing to 20 percent to the Gross Domestic Product. He said that the government had brought Prime Minster Kissan Package worth Rs 341 billion in order to make development in agriculture sector and to facilitate farmers. He said that under the government health policy, free medical facilities were being provided to under-privileged segment of the society. He said that quality education and trained manpower were essential to compete with the rest of the world. He lauded the steps being taken on the part of the UAF in the area of academia and research with a special focus on agriculture sector. He added that they had recruited 2.5 lakh teachers that will help improve situation of the education sector.
Dr Muhammad Iqbal Zafar said that without ensuring the quality education, we cannot cope with the challenges of modern era. He lauded the revolutionary steps of government to promote education, and uplift the agricultural sector. He said that knowledge based economies are growing across the globe and we have to take the measurers in this regard. He said that UAF was taking all possible measures to produce the quality manpower and research work. He said that the country was blessed with tremendous talent. He said that the Kissan package, Punjab Educational Endowment Fund, PM Fee imbursement scheme, HEC need-based scholarship etc are the hallmark measures that will bring tangible results.
He said under a Rs. 1350 million federally funded project, the infrastructure like multi-storey ICT Block, Digital Library, Student Services Center, and a Hostel for 1000 students, is at final stage. The project also include campus wide ICT infrastructure worth Rs. 250 million. The University now has 10-G connectivity across the campus. The voice over IP solution has recently been launched, whereas ERP and Campus Management System, is also in the process of deployment. With the financial support of federal government, a sub-campus of this University has been established in T.T. Singh at a cost of Rs. 502 million. He lauded federal Government for approving a project regarding Establishment of UAF Sub-Campus in District Okara at a total cost of Rs. 889.291 million.
Nazir Hussain said that in fourth phase, manufacturing plant of laptop had started manufacturing. He added that only 9 percent youth is getting higher education compared to 90 percent in South Korea. He added with the laptop, the students will be able to get the access to 10,000 books and a number of journals to excel in the knowledge.
Dr Hafeez Sadaqat said that the University was making all out efforts to ensure the modern facilities to the students. He said Rs 700 million was being given to the students as scholarships in the university. He said that laptop scheme is enabling the students to compete the students with the rest of the world.