ISLAMABAD: The delay by the Federal Directorate of Education (FDE) in starting third-year admissions in degree colleges provided a chance for private educational institutions to attractthe students.

After a two weeks` delay, the FDE on Sunday announced the opening of admissions in the colleges. Several teachers claimed that FDE`s negligence provided an open field to private colleges/universities togive admission to the students.

`Every day, scores of students contacted us to get information about the admissions. I guess a majority of them have taken admission in private colleges,` said a federal government college faculty member.

The FDE used to start the admissions within a few days after the announcement of the intermediate results. However, this year, it took over two weeks to start the process.

On the other hand, private colleges have been offering admissions for the last several weeks.Sources in the FDE told Dawn that instead of finalising the admission policy before the announcement of the intermediate results, the FDE officials started the file work too late.

`The file was supposed to reach CADD for a final approval within a few days after the announcement of the results. But our officers 1(ept sitting on the file by August 25,` said an official in the FDE.

He said the Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) had announced the intermediate results onAugust 13. The admissions in the government colleges should have been opened on August 15.

However, speaking to Dawn, the director of model colleges, Dr Tariq Masood, rejected the impression that the FDE used delaying tactics to provide an open field to private colleges.

He said in the past the colleges on their own placed advertisements in newspapers seeking admissions few days after theAugust 13. The admissions in the government colleges should have been opened on August 15.

However, speaking to Dawn, the director of model colleges, Dr Tariq Masood, rejected the impression that the FDE used delaying tactics to provide an open field to private colleges.

He said in the past the colleges on their own placed advertisements in newspapers seeking admissions few days after the announcement of the intermediate results. But this year, he added, due to some reasons the FDE could not open the admissions on time.

`Actually, in order to centralise the system, the Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) and the FDE decided to run centralised advertisements.

The completion of the file work took many days that`s why we are late this year.` He, however, added that things had been settled and the admission advertisements were published in newspapers on Sunday.

Associate Professor Ijaz Ahmed, who teaches at the Islamabad Model College for Boys F-10, said every year the FDE announced admissions within one or two days after the announcement of the intermediate results.

However, this year it took 17 days to start the process, which will disturb the academic schedule of the students.

`The issuance of prospectus, scrutiny of documents and compiling of the merit lists are a time-consuming process,` he said.

Professor Sagheer Mirani, the president of the Federal Government College Association, claimed that the FDE was providing an open field to the private sector by deliberately not opening admissions on time.

`The negligence of the FDE has deprived our colleges of scores of brilliant students as a majority of the admission seekers got themselves enrolled in private colleges or universities. Now I don`t think we will have bright and brilliant students rather will be offering admissions to rejected students,` he said.

According to the FDE admission notice, the studentscangetprospectusand admission forms from August 31 to September 9.

The merit list will be published on September 14 af ter which interviews will be conducted from September 16 to 21. Classes will commence from October 5.