Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Rana Tanveer Hussain, Federal Minister for Science and Technology, announced, on Wednesday that the construction of National Science School building and allied facilities would commence soon.

He noted that for this regard, the Punjab Government had also offered land in an educational city in Lahore, free of cost. The minister expressed these views in his address at the launching ceremony and orientation session of National Talent Farming Scheme (STFS). Prof. Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms; Fazal Abbass Maken, Secretary, Ministry of Science and Technology; Prof. Dr Muhammad Ashraf, Chairman PSF and Hasnat Ahmed Qureshi, STFS Project Manager were also present on the occasion. The Ceremony was also attended by the first batch of STFS 300 students, STFS Management, and Heads of S&T organisations.

Hussain remarked that although the cost of land had previously been allocated in the in FY 2015-16, the CM Punjab has provided the land free of cost on his personal intervention. He said that most important aspect of STFS is its establishment of the “National Science School”, which will be a boarding school with facilities on the pattern of Cadet Colleges for the continuous support and grooming of the capable students with an aptitude towards science education. After the establishment of the “National Science School”, the selection of the students will be made on a regular basis from Grade Eight, which is presently being done after Matriculation. Hussain said that S&T sector developments need more hefty allocation of budget for R&D in order to achieve national targets. Ahsan Iqbal, Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms, asserted that ever since its inception, he had been associated with the scheme as he considered it to be a part of Pakistan Vision 2025. He expressed his satisfaction over translating the vision into a reality.