ISLAMABAD: Despite the passage of over three months in completion of scrutiny procedure to shortlist candidates to fill 14 slots abroad in different universities all over the world, Prime Minster Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has still not given approval of final candidates so far. According to the information available with Daily Times, there are eight chairs for Urdu and Pakistan Studies. Two of these seats are available in Egypt while the others are in universities of China, Turkey, Iran, Jordan, Nepal and Kazakhstan. The information stated that the vacant seats for students pursuing Urdu and Pak Studies were at Peking University, China, Al-Azhar University, Egypt, Ain Shams University, Egypt, Allama Iqbal Fellowship, Germany, Quaid-e-Azam Distinguished Professorship at Columbia University, US, Quaid-e-Azam Studies, University of California, US, Allama Iqbal Fellowship, Cambridge University, UK, Pak Studies, Ankara University, Turkey, Quaid-e-Azam Studies seat and Baptist University, Hong Kong. Other seats are at Tehran University, Iran, Jordan University, Jordan, Tribhuvan University, Nepal, Abylai Khan University of International Relations & World Languages, Kazakhstan. The purpose of these available seats, apart from educating these students, is to create awareness about the Pakistani society, its history, culture and national heroes. The PhD scholars with strong academic backgrounds are usually considered for these seats. The sources disclosed that the seats have remained vacant since long and hardly in January this year, a high level committee had been formed by PM Shahid Khaqan Abbasi which consisted of representatives from parliament, Higher Education Commission (HEC), Cabinet Division, Establishment Division and Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to sources, the committee shortlisted 45 candidates out of 110 applicants and forwarded these names to PM Abbasi for selection of final names. An official of HEC said that it was a good initiative by PM Abbasi that he immediately formed the committee soon after resuming office and the process was also completed very shortly. However, he added, the delay at this stage is beyond logic. He said that these seats were very important. He added that ambassador or high commissioner of the respective country would compile annual or quarterly performance of the person holding the seat. The sources further revealed that since devolution of the Ministry of Education in 2010, the availablity of Pakistani seats in 14 universities is in jeopardy and most of the seats are vacant owing to a lack of focus and interest of successive governments. Published in Daily Times, May 15th 2018.