'Lost Identity'

By Sana Batool Naqvi.

Digital libraries at educational institutes are made for the purpose of providing students,the exposure towards a useful technology called computer..It helps them to raise the standard of education of there institute.Students are supposed to use this place for educating themselves that includes making of notes,searching material for assignments etc.
I will no more let you read these boring facts and waste your time....so here I come to share something interesting.
Allow me to take you to the ground floor of an enormous structure firmly placed in the centre of the campus...yess.. I am talking about the Mahmud Husain library.The ground floor comprises of a room known as 'Digital library' as written on the head of its door.
I wonder why they call it a library and not a 'cyber cafe.To agree or disagree with my statement you need to step into the room.Right in front of which,sits two ladies chatting happily with each other all the time and enjoying the job in the chilled air conditioned room.

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The situation here is contrary to what fatima(my friend)wrote in her writing piece about the receptionist at I.R department in her article 'IMPOLITE RECEPTION'...where she talked about the impolite receptionist.

Let me take you back to the cyber cafe of UoK......after getting in ,you are told to submit ur students id card at the reception ..so that they can register your name as well as the time when you entered inside.Now its a challenge for anyone to find a student engaged with a pc and using the technology to educate him/herself...you can find very few who are actually utilizing their time for the purpose, that a digital libraray should be used for.

Majority of them spend their time using social networking websites like facebook,orkut and twitter etc.While some behave childishly and play games .The last time when I visited the library to search material for my assignment I saw a girl watching 'Lion king' that actually made me feel if she is a retard...as you cannot even switch on the speakers there...!so with no sound she was watching the movie...even if i don't object on such a mature lady doing such an immature thing,how can I stop myself from thinking, why at such a place???
.While some are mature enough and spend their time doing other things of their interest other than education..Beside this the library charges 10rs per hour,and this is the reason why the receptionists enters the time when you step in so that they can calculate from that time and can show you the bill at the end...

All these reasons made me feel that the digital libraray of UoK has lost its identity and has become something else where the visitors do everything except for educating themselves and the fact that they charge money is more than enough to consider it as a cyber cafe.

Allegedly failed.. !!

By Suleman Saadat Khan.

‘Apnay department se original marks sheet nikalwain phir ana’, this sentence was inculcated in my mind by semester cell personnel so strongly that I could have forgotten my name but not my problem.
My bad timing started the moment I received my 2nd semester proforma. God knows how hard I work before every terminal examination of mine. Oh no, don’t get me wrong, I study hard not to get the top grades in class ofcourse, but to pass in every subject so that when I show my proforma to my respected parents I can get a little less scolding.

Yeah, let’s get back to my story. I received my second semester proforma and was shocked to discover that I was fail in English. Not by 2 or 4 marks, but I had failed with precious figure of 10! I’ve quite a remarkable memory, speaking honestly, so I ran back home to check my notebook where I had copied my marks. I was pass in English, and had 79 marks in total. The result was wrongly printed in proforma.

The very next day I swiftly made my way towards department office and told them what my problem was. ‘Dekhain ye problem semester cell walon ka hai un se pata karen’..... ‘OK’ was all I could utter in response. Under the scorching heat of sun, I traveled from new building to semester cell and was greeted by a tired and weary looking man whose tone was obviously not welcoming. ‘Mujhe samajh nahe ata ap sab yahan chaley atey hain, ap ko pata nahe andar sirf staff members a saktay hain?” After listening to his contemptuous and stinging words, I told him my problem. “Wapis department jao aur original marks sheet nikalwao”, he said.

I again headed back to my department and asked office personnel to show me the marks sheet. “Wait karo”, a person said, and I did. He started combing all the files one by one. After hard work of 20 minutes all he told me was “Mujhe nahe pata kahan rakhi hai, Jameel sahib kal aingay unse lena”.

Next day, Jameel sahib appeared like an angel! I ran towards him and asked him to give marks sheet. He finally managed to find MY sheet and I made my way towards semester cell again, all alone, without conveyance ofcourse. I saw a great number of students there with a great number of complaints. I waited, and when my turn came I showed that man my marks sheet, happily. “Is pe teacher kay signature kahan hain?’, he said. I was infuriated!. I came back to my department and found that teacher will be gone for 2 weeks. Finally when she came I got her signature on paper and headed towards semester cell, again. It was a hot day and I wanted no more of it. I showed them my marks sheet again and waited. After 25 minutes a man appeared from inside and said “Wo humara admi kuch dino k liye bahar gaya hai, wo a kar computer men ap k result ki correction karey ga..men pen se ap k proforma men correction kar deta hun”. ‘If I had wanted a “pen correction” then I could have done it myself idiot!’ I said to myself. I was fuming.

I finally got hold of my dear uncle who’s a head of a respected department in KU, he took my original sheet, my proforma and went to semester cell. In less than 10 minutes he appeared from inside and told me my result was corrected ELECTRONICALLY and I could get my new proforma in a week with a submission of application. I thanked him but my mind was elsewhere. I was thinking about those poor souls who, like me, fail in proformas and have no uncles in university who’re department heads. All I could utter at moment was “chalen uncle chai hojaye!”

The I.R. (Impolite Reception) Department

By Fatimah Mazhar




The international relations department is one of the finest and most wanted departments of the social sciences faculty at Karachi University. Most wanted because the teaching staff here is abundant with professionals and educators who take their job quite seriously (with a few exceptions of course). In fact, I would love to pursue my masters in this subject. The only thing that is wrong with this department is its reception room and the people in it. Let me tell you why...

Its normal for you to close your eyes when there is a dust storm, to drink water when you are thirsty and trust me folks, it is absolutely normal to feel annoyed when your I.R. teacher doesn’t’t show up on time ,especially when you are a student who has come walking all the way from the mass communication department. The very first words that come out of your mouth are mostly, “is he going to come or not?? I am not going to waste my time waiting in vain”. Then one of your sympathetic friends tries to cool you down by saying, “don’t worry, let’s go to the reception and find out”. And now, the fun begins…

Normally, institutions have big and spacious receptions with an all-time-smiling-for-no-reason receptionist. But when it comes to the I.R. reception at K.U. you might experience the contrary. The room is even smaller than the lavatory (it is right next to it). I think maybe the room’s size is the source of frustration to the man sitting on the desk because he is a man who is ready to attack anyone who comes seeking information. The I.R. receptionist wears this particular frown on his face that makes you feel that you are not welcome. He glares at you as you stumble into the room and place your hands on the desk. He doesn’t like it, and starts looking into a file that was lying on the desk lifelessly just before you came in.
You wait for the man to get through it but he doesn’t, so it’s you who breaks the ice by asking him where Sir XYZ is. He asks you the teacher’s name over and over again and then gets busy with his assistant sitting in front of him and forgets all about you. You remind his majesty of your presence by repeating the teacher’s name and then he plays the which-section-are-you-in card. You spend almost fifteen minutes explaining him from which department, class, section and shift you are from. Then he impatiently, without even checking any register, tells you to leave because “he” thinks the teacher is not going to come. If you dare to ask why, he yells at you and utters “aapko kyaa karna,class ni hy toh jaaen”.


Humiliated, you turn away from the room when you suddenly realize that you can ask him for the teacher’s contact number and do the job yourself. “aap jaaen aur chairperson se mil len” , is his irritated reply.



One word of advice people, next time if your I.R. teacher gets absent, leave immediately and don’t dare venture into ‘you know where’. It’s better to miss the class than to have his angry spit all over your face. Beware!!!

Constant vigilance!!!!!!!!!

Political Party Culture in K.u

By Sehar Azhar


University of Karachi is one of the well known Universities of Pakistan,where more than 25,000 students are studying .Parents prefer K.u for there children instead of other private Universities but at the same time some guardians/parents never allow there children to join K.u and get education from there.



The reason behind this is the developed political party culture in UoK.



There are different political parties in our University but the leading parties are APMSO,ISO,IJI etc.Just because of these political parties the circumstances have become adverse ,when conflicts arises between them on different unvaluable issues or or events,any of such incidents happened in the city has its direct effect on at the University level and students belonging to political parties start conflict in University also and due to these unreasonable conflicts in University teachers are enforced not to take classes and lectures ,in this way the studies of students are badly effected.



Not only male but female students are also actively involved in different political activities directly or indirectly.

Sometimes when clashes happen in the Campus,students find it difficult to go back home safely.



But beside all this these political parties are doing so many good things like organaizing different events like bookfair,cricket tournaments and etc.



I think there is no harm in political activities of students at any institution if the activities are for the sake of betterment for students and the institution but not for there own will and desires

Because not only in our country but all over the world this political party culture is considered good and is encouraged.

The policy of K.U,B.A v/s B.S

By Zubia Noor.


When K.u introduced the B.s system,that will provide the graduation degree in four years which will be equivalent to masters degree,students doing 2 year bachelors felt as if they are pushed into a deep trouble.

They would have to wait a whole year to get admission in Uok after completeing there 2 year bachelors from college so it makes a total of 5 years for them to get there masters degree.



K.u has no policy for allowing those awaiting students to get admission instead of waiting for one whole year.

B.A/B.Sc exams were finished in December 2009 but the students had to wait for there results,and got admitted in January 2011.



Universities should keep there admissions open for the awaiting students to save there time.Students admitted in universities after intermediate will now complete there graduation in 4 years and get the degree which is equivalent to masters.Whereas on the contrary,students coming from colleges afeter completing bachelors are'nt allowed to get immediate admissions.

 K.u should also look upon there new policy and give it a second thought as all other Universities always keep there options open for awaiting candidates.

Don't know wether people would agree to this  or not but it was just a thought .

This is another piece of writing for all those, reading SahafiOnline..

''Fashion Parade'' is'nt it???

By Sana Batool Naqvi



For those who are really fond of fashion,style and want to follow the latest trends,a visit to UoK is a must.

One can witness the ladies with stylish wardrobes,shoes,trendy hand bags and a fashionable walk all over the Campus.I am not only talking about the non-hijabis but I have observed hijabis doing the same thing and following latest fashion of taking hijab.

Its not only a matter of UoK but all institutes in Karachi falls in this category.



While reading this piece one would definitely think that the situation mentioned in it is very much harmless and if you have this thought in mind you are right.

I don't have any particular reason to explain ,why I am talking about such a situation,I am just throwing light on a very light and interesting issue of almost all the educational institutes of the city and I am doing it just because i feel like it.



I sometimes think that there is only one thing which is needed and that is a ''Ramp'' in our educational institutes where ladies can walk and show how much of effort they have put for looking so much fashionable ,no matter how over dressed they are.



Girls do not follow fashion so anxiously in schools and colleges as in Universities as they feel themselves bigger as soon as they join a University...(I aslo include myself in the category)



Everyday when I go to the University I get so many new ideas of how to get my new dress stitched,what stylish haircut should I have now,what colour to choose for stelleto shoes,what kind of trendy hand bags should I go for, and many more.

Its really good to see different colours in the University and get diifferent and new ideas of how to dress up in a more fashionable way.

In the summer time you can witness the summer collection and bright colours of summer whereas in the winter season the winter clothings are seen all around.

The best part  is when you go to the University all dressed up,and friends waiting on the couches shout ''Oohhoo kahan ki tayari ha'',and you just smile with your eyes rolling and show them that it was just a lame joke for you and nothing else ,but they continue teasing you all day long for the vibrant colour you are wearing with colourful matching bangles that you are showing them for the frist time.My friends even sometimes requests me to walk fashionably  so that they can see my ''Tayari'' from head to toe which is definitely so embarassing for me as i know that people other then my pals are also watching me but nonetheless when I go home, look myself into the mirror it reminds me of the teasing laughters ,meaningful expressions of my buddies and it actually makes me laugh like anything on there stupid imaginations.

This piece of my wriitng should'nt reflect the idea that I m against fashion..No wayy ! I m also one of those who love and are very much fond of following the latest trends.Its just a thought that I m sharing with those who have pulled out time to open this link.Its just an effort to not let there time get wasted .

Dont know wether people find this piece interesting or not but atleast i've put my effort to let them read something and criticise the idea.

So this goes out there for all folks reading Sahafionline..!..

Ramadan Reruns

By Fatimah Mazhar

Bonjour!




This is it! Our first topic! Cool isn’t it! Well cool for ‘sahafionline’ it is…Anyways, today we are going to talk about Karachi University blooming in the Ramadan season. Some of my folks would beg to differ on the ‘blooming’ metaphor because fasting while attending K.U. in the scorching month of August is not much of a pleasant experience. Don’t get me wrong people; I am certainly not blaming Ramadan but something else that gets changed during this holy month. As to what it is I am referring to…you will soon come to know about it. For now, let’s just enlighten you with ‘Ramadan: the KUrian way’.

This post is going to be quite interesting to almost all of the KUrians out there. At least the stuff mentioned, will be. For example, the most common sight at KU is our university bus a.k.a. ‘point’. The point saga to some might be boring and a not-so-much-of-an-issue-thing but to the point travelers, the mango people i.e. ‘the aam awaam’ or as I like to call them ‘point waasi’ (people of the point), the problems pertaining to this vehicle is one issue that is a must to be discussed. For instance, the points are never late…aha! That’s nice, what is so wrong about not being late??? What is the problem here? Well…please let me complete my sentence pals. I said that the points are never late not because they are early…no, it is so because they never show up in the first place. Exiting isn’t it folks? Frown. What is it with these drivers and punctuality?? And especially during Ramadan they neglect their duties more than ever (Allah knows better whether they do it on purpose or not). Now one can only imagine the state of a person who is from Roza (is fasting), has to miss his point and travel by the public transport. It’s not pleasant. Take it from someone who knows…



On arriving late, the panting and gasping student is confronted with yet another situation: the-teacher-coming-or-not-coming-guessing game. The game gets even ‘more’ interesting when only one class is scheduled for the day. Devil’s laugh! You stand there stunned; thinking you never deserved it and vow to sue the teacher in American court! Ha! In your dreams fella! Note: these reactions are solely of those students who are academically bright and look forward to regular classes (alias ‘nerds’).



The Ramadan fun has only begun; it has much more to offer! Apart from the points and teacher dilemma we have some other features of Ramadan in KU: an intriguing ‘chain of rickshaw transport’ and the ‘Mujh ko bhi toh lift karaade’ system of lifts (for those who are too lazy to spend pennies on rickshaws). These are, as far as I know, exclusive features of KU that get even more popular during Ramadan.



The main problem of the whole Ramadan: ‘the KUrian way’ (the one I mentioned in the first paragraph), that causes fracas during this month, is the constantly changing classes’ schedule issued by the registrar. We have early classes and the points leave almost half an hour later than they do in regular days. It really is frustrating since varsities in our vicinity get an hour early off form their classes… What luck! But then our bona fide genius authorities have plans that change and you find yourself in a perplexed situation inside the point, with no seat, no air and soon with no clue as to why the points have been asked to leave an hour later than the normal schedule. Yet again you ask yourself whether you deserve this or not. Pity yourself, that’s the best you can do.



The Ramadan features mentioned above are exclusively experienced at KU by the ‘common man’ and it really is not that much of a ‘blooming’ experience. But we should keep in mind that it is Ramadan and we should not let our patience be lost.



One word of advice that I will use as a signature in my posts specifically is “CONSTANT VIGILANCE” inspired by Mad-Eye Moody (a character from the Harry Potter movie). It does not only apply to all ‘sahafis’ (journalists) out there but to hoi polloi. One should be alert and watchful of one’s society and the people in it. This helps to understand the world we are living in. So, this goes out there to all the folks who are reading ‘sahafionline’… “Constant vigilance!”

The 'Ice Age' herd is here folks.....

Heya folks...


The ‘ice age’ herd is here….no I am not talking about the sloth or the mammoth instead I am referring to our group ‘ sahafionline’ which is as odd as the herd that was shown in the ice age movies. Surrounded by the same differences, our group has also set out on an interesting and an unpredictable journey. We all have been assembled together on a single platform as such that even if we want to we can’t leave and have to take care of our blog in the same way the herd took care of the human baby in the first part of the movie. Things that we shall need along the way are courage, dedication and something called team-work.



The reason I mention my group is because people conventionally describe the individual behind the blog and its purpose in the first post. This blog is not going to be about a single person or two rather it is going to be a joint effort of several people (which I previously labeled as the ice age herd) and each member of this group will post a different article daily to keep the blog in a running condition.



As to who we are and what the blog is all about… it would be sufficient to state that we are varsity students and have come up with this blog to write about the society and the individuals living in it but most importantly we will be discussing the ‘most’ interesting creature on this planet, a creature whose: chemistry tells us that it acts like a free agent, physics obeys the third law of motion (that is this creature gives a reaction to every action) and biology involves the complex matters of the heart… it is none other than ‘THE YOUTH’.



All in all, this blog ‘sahafionline’ (sahafi is Urdu for journalist) will be focusing on the important issues, problems, news and views …probably everything under the sun. Also we (the ice age herd) will talk about our journey and our Alma – mater.



Hope you will enjoy reading us and will gift us with your precious feedback. We are open to criticism (as much as we hate it).
Happy reading!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!