ISLAMABAD, Pakistan: Vice Chancellor (VC) of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) Professor Dr Shahid Siddiqui Thursday restored Umra scheme and held a draw to select the lucky ones in the university’s main campus.
According to the draw, 17 employees will go to the Holy Land for performing religious rites this year, a press release said.
The Umra scheme that was held up for the last four years will now be made a regular feature, the VC said assuring the employees’ welfare will be his top priority.
The entire process of selecting lucky ones was held in a transparent manner, in presence of the VC and the representative bodies of employees, officers and the academic staff.
The successful ones were mostly low-grade employees including drivers, gardeners, Naib-Qasid and lower division clerks.
Dr Shahid Siddiqui further announced that the employees’ health and residential facilities will be upgraded. Negotiation was already in progress with some insurance companies for providing health cards to the employees, so that they could get medical facilities in any hospital of their choice.