Higher Education Commission (HEC) Chairman Dr Tariq Banuri while showing serious concern over the poor result of Central Superior Service (CSS) examinations 2018, has announced to set up a high level committee to pinpoint the specific weaknesses in higher educational institutions. In a statement on Sunday, the HEC chairman said that the committee would review the universities’ performance including quality education, subjects, skills, etc, so that the HEC could help universities to overcome some of the deficiencies immediately. “I consider the CSS results announced here on Friday to be a shocking indictment of my sphere of responsibility,” he added. Out of the 9,391 candidates who appeared for the exam, only 312 with percentage of ie, 3.32 were declared to have qualified and of these 261 will be recommended for appointment to superior services. “I sat in the same exam many decades ago. The number of candidates was about 2,000, of which about 400 qualified and about 200 were recommended for appointment. This decline needs to be treated as a national crisis,” HEC Chairman Dr Tariq Banuri said. “More than that, however, it will require a sustained attention to enhancement of quality. Based on the report, we will submit detailed recommendations to the government, including the strengthening of institutional, financial, and capacity building aspects,” the chairman decided. This is one of the most important challenges faced by HEC, he said and assured to address it during his tenure. Meanwhile, working group on higher education reforms showed serious concerns over the recent CSS results and demanded to the HEC chairman to evolve strategy in collaboration with other stakeholders. They also demanded an in-depth study to identify the real gaps and causes, the statement added. Published in Daily Times, July 2nd 2018.