KARACHI: The Sindh High Court on Monday ordered the provincial government to make the current two-year graduate degree programme into four years in the next three years.

The order came from a two-judge bench headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar while hearing a petition regarding education reforms in Sindh.

The bench also ordered the formation of a committee of experts that would guide provisions of university-level facilities in all colleges of the province.

The bench observed that the government could start with giving admissions to the four-year degree programme in 60 out of about 350 colleges. The bench noted that it would help the government gauge difficulties and challenges it could face in implementing the programme and by overcoming the problems it can then implement it in all colleges of the province.

The bench observed that the two-year graduate degree was also not recognised for admission to postgraduate programmes in foreign educational institutions. To qualify for postgraduate degree programmes private institutions in the county and foreign universities offer postgraduate diplomas.

The bench asked the education secretary who was present in the court why all the colleges in the province could not be provided university-level facilities.

The secretary replied that all the universities in the province had been directed to not give admission to two years BS or associate programmes. He added that in colleges the two-year graduate degree programme is being changed to four years graduate programme.

Observing that those students who had already been given admission to the two-year BS or associate programme to continue their studies the court ordered the government to change the graduate degree to four years in the entire province within three years.