ISLAMABAD: Globally, distance-learning is gaining importance and offering educational opportunities to those unable to attend classes at a campus. Pakistan is perhaps the only country in the world where distancelearning is gaining a bad name.

Assignment solutions for courses at the Allama Iqbal University Islamabad (AIOU), the country`s largest distance learning university with 1.3 million students are selling in the markets like hotcakes.

Shops in all major markets of the twin cities are openly selling these solved assignments, Karachi Company and 6th Roads are especially famous for shops offering these tools for cheating.

`Please come inside, if you are looking for AIOU assignments,` a salesman at Nishat Education Consultant in G-9 Markaz called out to this correspondent.

A salesman at a neighboring shop also began hawking his wares. `Please come in, we have the best solved assignments in the market. They are cheaper than others and cannot be challenged by the AIOU,` he said He read out the rates for the assignments, Masters assignments were available for Rs 1000 to 1500 while Bachelors and Intermediate assignments were being sold for Rs 500 to 800.

Hummad, one of the salesmen told Dawn he has been selling AIOU assignments for the last 10 years. `We have several qualified teachers on our panel, who make these assignment solutions for us,` he said.

An MSc student who had come to the market to purchase solved assignments told Dawn that as soon as he enrolled himself in the AIOU, he received four letters from book shops offering assignment solutions. `Initially, I was surprised that these bookstores knew my home address but later I found out that some people at the AIOU are working hand in glove with these book stores and provide students` information to them,` he said.

The newly appointed AIOU Vice Chancellor Dr Shahid Siddiqui told Dawn he has been taking various steps to stop this practice.

`The first thing we plan to do is to revise curricula and design of the assignments,` he said.

A committee has been formed to work on this problem, he said.-Kashif Abbasi