𝐇𝐄𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐄𝐂 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐞𝐭 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐈𝐇𝐂

𝐇𝐄𝐂 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐏𝐄𝐂 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐒𝐞𝐭 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐫 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬: 𝐈𝐇𝐂

Justice Babar Sattar of the Islamabad High Court has given an illustrative judgment on whether Higher Education Commission and Pakistan Engineering Council have statutory power to declare one degree at par with another for the purpose of determination of criteria of employment, promotion and grade of an employee.

The Court referred to numerous judgments of the Supreme Court including Maula Bux Shaikh Vs. Chief Minister Sindh (2018 SCMR 2098) and Fida Hussain Vs. The Secretary, Kashmir Affairs and Northern Affairs Division, Islamabad and another (PLD 1995 Supreme Court 701) and held that it is the domain of the PEC to declared one set of qualification equal to another but it is neither the domain of the PEC nor the HEC to advise the Governments on promotion and employment criteria. The PEC is vested with the authority under the PEC Act to regulate the profession of engineering and engineers and their working but it is not vested with the power to regulate the working or employment of those professional engineers who are employed in government and semi-government entities. The same is the case with HEC.

It is the sole authority of the concerned employer to determine which degree is to considered at par with another for the purpose of promotion and employment of its employees. However, HEC can declare one kind of qualification at par with another but in terms of the period which is required for teaching and learning process of a certain qualification. HEC’s equivalence certificate does not signify that the skills and knowledge acquired by a holder of one kind of qualification is equal to the skills and knowledge of another person holding a different degree/qualification.

The Court at the end allowed the Writ Petition and set aide the notification issued by the HEC in which it had been held that  B. Tech (Honor) is equivalent to BS.C Engineering for promotion and determination of grade.

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