Dr. Khalid Mahmood acknowledged PPL’s contribution to the lab renovation and asserted that this kind of cooperation would be extremely beneficial to the higher education sector.
Dr. Khalid Mahmood Iraqi, vice chancellor of the University of Karachi (KU), inaugurated the Pakistan Petroleum Limited (PPL) Chemical Synthesis Laboratory at the Department of Chemical Engineering on Thursday.
A strong connection between the government, businesses, and academia was mentioned during the inaugural ceremony of PPL Chemical Synthesis Laboratory by KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr. Khalid Iraqi as being crucial for the growth and development of the nation.
He referred to it as the “triangle of success for society” and stated that Pakistan, in particular, needs to make progress in this triangle in order to meet all of the goals for the country’s development.
He acknowledged PPL’s contribution to the lab renovation and asserted that this kind of cooperation would be extremely beneficial to the higher education sector.
In order to help bridge the gap between universities and industries, Dr. Khalid Iraqi informed the audience that the university has established academia-industry linkages in almost every department.
“Our students need exposure to the local and global markets while they are enrolled in classes on campus so that when they enter the workforce in the future, they won’t encounter any problems and will be able to carry out their responsibilities without issue.” The VC acknowledged that the faculty and students of the Department of Chemical Engineering have developed close ties with the industries.
As a result, a number of public and private sector companies and organizations are stepping forward to make the necessary arrangements for the students, faculty, and department by renovating and establishing labs, organizing field trips, and providing internships and jobs to our students even before they graduate from the department.
The majority of people are still unaware of solid waste and solid waste management, according to Project Director for Solid Waste Emergency and Efficiency Project Engineer Zubair Ahmed Channa.
He suggested that universities and the media could play a significant role in raising awareness of the value of solid waste and its safe and beneficial use. He noted that Pakistan had very little of a recycling culture and that many businesses and production facilities had no idea how to turn their used products into other useful products.
One of the speakers, Professor Dr. Mahfooz Soomro from Western Sydney University in Australia, claimed that while the west has added many new subjects and topics to their curricula, countries like Pakistan took years to update their course textbooks, which is why these nations have developed more slowly than others. He requested that the faculty and students in the department look into potential research topics that could benefit society.
Additionally speaking at the event were the Dean of the Faculty of Science, Professor Dr. Samina Bano, and the Head of the KU Department of Chemical Engineering, Engineer Dr. Shagufta Ishteyaque. Later, the department hosted a poster contest, walk-in interviews, and technical talks.