ISLAMABAD – Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz expressed gratitude to her critics, saying, “Thanks to them, I have grown much stronger. Whether they hurl insults or chant slogans in front of me, it no longer affects me,”.
CM Maryam said, “If someone teaches you to use abusive language, make accusations or defame others, they are not your well-wishers. Opponents only focus on criticism and propaganda. I have faced more criticism due to political opposition,”.
She was addressing the Fast University Islamabad Merit Scholarship Program event on Monday.
The CM said she being a mother and no mother could ever say to her children “burn, kill, pickup sticks.
She indirectly criticized Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Founder Imran Khan, who is currently in Adiala jail, without naming him by saying that “own children are sitting comfortably while others’ children are suffering in jails,”.
She said, “I feel immense joy in awarding scholarships to students, and we are advancing our mission of public service without discrimination. We are also providing students with electric bikes. Chinese companies will establish electric bike manufacturing plants in Punjab,”.
Maryam Nawaz said that the education system is being aligned with the modern needs.
“The students must work hard to take charge of the country’s future. For the first time, the Punjab government is offering scholarships to students of private universities as well. This is the change the people of Pakistan are witnessing,”.
Earlier, the chief minister had launched the second phase of the merit scholarship program at Fast University Islamabad, benefiting 2,570 students from the Rawalpindi Division. The program included 1,660 scholarships for public sector universities and 637 for students in federal and private sector universities.
Besides the public sector universities, the private technology and professional universities are now also included in the merit scholarship program.
Under the merit scholarship program, the government would cover educational expenses for outstanding students in 68 fields. The students under the age of 22 from Punjab are eligible to apply, provided their family’s monthly income is less than Rs300,000.
As many as 30,000 scholarships will be awarded annually, with a total of 120,000 over four years.
The talented students could pursue higher education at top institutions without worrying about financial constraints. The Punjab government will cover 100% of the educational expenses for the students. To ensure transparency, the applications were received and processed through an online portal.
In the first phase, 2,473 students from the University of Punjab were granted merit scholarships. Besides it, 1,886 students from UET Lahore are also receiving scholarships under the program.
