NCAI announces Artificial Intelligence challenge

on 16/02/2023

National Center for Artificial Intelligence (NCAI) has invited young and bright minds to present the most innovative projects to participate in Artificial Intelligence (AI) competition “AI TechVerse2023.”
Al Techverse 2023 is an augmentation of NCAI’s flagship events: the 3rd IEEE International Conference on Artificial Intelligence (ICAI 2023), Al IDEAS Challenge, Al Expo (Lab2Market), and Al Voyage. According to an official of NCAI, this auspicious event titled “Al Techverse 2023” is going to be held from February 21-23 at the National University of Science and Technology (NUST). The competition will provide an opportunity for young minds to connect, network, and bring their best ideas to the table.

Climate damage may cost Pakistan dearly

on 16/02/2023

Failure to invest the bare minimum needed to withstand projected climate damage could cost emerging markets hundreds of billions in climate damages and lost GDP growth this decade, according to a new study by Standard Chartered.
The Adaptation Economy, which investigates the need for climate adaptation investment in 10 markets – including China, India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan – reveals that, without investing a minimum of USD30 billion in the adaptation by 2030, these markets could face projected damages and lost GDP growth of USD377 billion: over 12 times that amount. The projection assumes that the world succeeds in limiting temperature rises to 1.5°C, in line with the Paris Agreement. In a 3.5°C scenario, the estimated minimum investment required more than doubles to USD62 billion and potential losses escalate dramatically if the investment is not made.
Examples of climate adaptation projects include the creation of coastal barrier protection solutions for areas vulnerable to flooding, the development of drought-resistant crops, and early-warning systems against pending natural disasters. Among the 10 markets in the study, India is projected to benefit the most from adaptation investment. The market would require an estimated USD11 billion to prevent climate damages and lost growth of USD135.5 billion in a 1.5°C warming scenario – equal to a thirteen-to-one return for the Indian economy of investment in climate adaptation. Meanwhile, China could avoid an estimated cost of USD112 billion by investing just USD8 billion. And Kenya could avoid costs of an estimated USD2 billion by investing USD200 million in adaptation. Even if the world’s nations manage to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, measures to adapt to climate change must be pursued alongside the global decarbonization agenda, with the banking sector having a critical role to play in unlocking finance.
The USD30 billion investment required for adaptation represents only slightly more than 0.1 percent of the combined annual GDP of the 10 markets in the study and much less than the estimated USD95 trillion emerging markets require to transition to net zero using mitigation measures, as outlined in Standard Chartered’s Just in Time report. The Adaptation Economy also surveyed 150 bankers, investors, and asset managers and found that, currently, just 0.4% of the capital held by respondents is allocated to adaptation in emerging markets where investment is needed most.
However, 59% of respondents plan to increase their adaptation investments over the next 12 months. And on average, adaptation financing is expected to rise from 0.8% of global assets in 2022 to 1.4% by 2030. Marisa Drew, Chief Sustainability Officer, Standard Chartered, said: “This report makes it clear that irrespective of efforts to keep global warming as close to 1.5C as possible we are going to have to incorporate climate-warming effects into our systems and adapt to its reality.”
“All nations will need to adapt to climate change by building more resilient agriculture, industry, and infrastructure, but the need is greatest in emerging and fast-developing economies with a disproportionate risk of exposure to the negative effects of rising temperatures and extreme weather.”
“We must urgently recognize that adaptation is a shared necessity, and as our Adaptation Economy research so effectively highlights, inaction creates a shared societal burden of exponentially increasing cost. The financial sector has a crucial role to play in directing capital towards adaptation and creating the proof points to demonstrate that investing in adaptation can be a commercially viable attractive proposition for the private sector.”

PCAA Awards Tallest Building Project to NESPAK

on 16/02/2023

Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority (PCAA) has engaged the services of NESPAK, the renowned Consultants of international fame through competitive bidding, for the tallest building in the Federal Capital, it was revealed by Dr. Tahir Masood, Managing Director NESPAK in a press communiqué here on Friday.
PCAA plans to construct a 35-storey high-rise office cum commercial tower at its plot along Jinnah Avenue, Blue Area Islamabad. The CAA Tower will add to NESPAK’s accomplishments, which already include the UBL Building, ISE Tower, and Ufone/PTET Tower on the same Avenue.
This iconic building is going to be the tallest in Islamabad. The tower will house various directorates and branches of CAA as well as airline corporate offices, airline booking center, business center, seminars and conference halls, media centers, financial institutes and banks, recreational facilities including an Aviation Science Museum, Art Gallery, Health Centre, Indoor sports facilities, baby daycare centers, food courts.
The structure will have a covered area of roughly 1 million square feet while containing the offices of different CAA cadres. The goal is to produce a green building that is sustainable, water-efficient, energy-efficient, and have an environmentally friendly design with a low carbon footprint.
Earlier, CAA and NESPAK entered into a Consultancy Agreement to provide services for the planning, design, and construction supervision of multi-storey buildings. Federal Minister of Aviation, Khawaja Saad Rafiq graced the Agreement signing ceremony and also attended by Director P&D CAA, Mr. Vikram Sodha, Managing Director NESPAK, Dr. Tahir Masood and Head of NESPAK Islamabad Office, Mr. Danish Raza n

With security package two power projects for
KP stand clear

on 16/02/2023

The World Bank (WB) would provide financial assistance for the construction work on two hydropower projects of 245 megawatts in the district Swat of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP).
After its completion, the project would generate an annual income of over Rs13 billion for the province, a report said.
The authorities have also decided to add a security package by making quick amendments to the documents before starting these energy projects.
This decision was taken in a high-level meeting with the World Bank mission which was attended by Secretary of Energy and Power Nisar Ahmad Khan.
WB Senior Energy Specialist Muhammad Saqib, members of the World Bank mission, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation (PEDO), Engineer Naeem Khan, Chief Engineer of KHRE Program Shah Hussain, and respective project directors.
Briefing the moot, Chief Executive PEDO Engineer Naeem Khan said that with the financial support of the WB, the construction work on 2 hydropower projects in the Swat district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would start in the year 2023, which include 157MW Maidyen Hydropower Project and 88MW GabralKalam Hydropower Project.
A US$450 million agreement has already been signed between the WB and the provincial government. Both projects will be completed by 2027.
Secretary Energy KP, Nisar Ahmad Khan reportedly said that both power projects were very important for the development and prosperity of the province. The completion of the projects would start a new era of development in the province. The projects will not only bring huge investment in the province but also create new employment opportunities.
He assured the World Bank mission that the provincial government was making fool-proof arrangements for the security of the staff working on the energy projects and was in touch with the local police, administration, and other security agencies.
He issued instructions to the officials that a security package should be prepared and practical work may soon be started so that the people of the province can benefit from its fruits. — ERMD

What we extracted from AILC’s industry-academia interaction
The moot of over 100 luminaries from academia and industry
displayed an eagerness to work together and introduce reforms

on 16/02/2023

Set aside milestones that the Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC) achieved after Engr. Najeeb Haroon’s takeover, Jan 11 academia-industry interaction in Islamabad extracted three results.
One, academia and industry which otherwise remain in touch with each other on many counts but formal interaction under some mechanism appears to be one of the requisites for any fruitful results to be secured in Pakistan.


Two that both sides are truly eager to create a genuine engagement so that the academia remains receptive to resolving the issues of the industry and in return, the latter recognizes the former as the part and parcel of the development of the country.


Three, both appeared convinced that PEC and other engineering institutions must play their due role viz-a-viz introducing requisite changes in all spheres of the engineering profession and education in Pakistan.
This moot, hosted by the Academia-Industry Liasion Committee (AILC) of the council led by Engr. Zahid Khand provided luminaries from academia and industry a conducive environment to understand each other’s issues, lacunas, strengths, and weaknesses for formulating a set of recommendations.
Though this committee has long been marred by multiple issues which hindered it to move ahead swiftly, this moot earned it the distinction of being the one that can lead genuine collaboration between academia and Industry and help the PEC and the Higher Education Commission (HEC) to bing about the changes in light of the joint recommendations of academia and industry.


A considerable number of participants from the industry, as well as the academia, demonstrated the level of hard work on the part of the committee and the teams from the council.
The participants whose number was not less than a hundred were distributed into two groups for discussions which were to be then clubbed into final recommendations.


Brig Syed Adnan, Registrar NUTECH—a participant from academia—said: we should understand that no industry anywhere can support such internships in which the engineer cannot perform. Universities are the most responsible institutions to create efficient engineers. The industry does not need academia as it is earning profits; academia needs the industry’s support. Academia is the marketeer and the industry is the client. We have to make industry academia’s customer which requires persons who are efficient and can deliver. The academia should link the engineer from the first semester with the industry. I can claim 80 to 90 percent of professors have never visited any industry in their life. They don’t know the names of machines, they cannot link the processes between theory and practice. How can they teach the students? We need to develop a system besides training the teachers.


Dr. M. Younus Javed VC MUST says we need to seriously review credit hours. Extra credit hours should be diverted to industry. We should embed industry with the overall training and skills. Pakistan Engineering Council should introduce a major shift from such aspect. We are not giving space to our students for looking at the industry. Our students badly lack presentation skills and they cannot present their work. Have a look at Malaysia and Korea, they work on the skills of their students.


Yet another said we have left the student free in Pakistan. How our student performs well when he opts for education abroad. He works there in the evening but still gets good grades. If we send them to the industry, they learn many things there besides education in the university. Also, we should learn the language we communicate in with the industry. The industry does not know academia’s language, it does understand economic language; not the theoretical process that we teach in the universities.


Dr Valiuddin, Vice Chancellor of Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology, Karachi said: Now we cannot be confined to the models of the universities. One can take courses from anywhere and there are many sources of knowledge available now. Thus, the role of the university will drastically be changed where we have to facilitate the student besides teaching the student and giving them skills. Every individual wants to go on a different path thus we need a plan for it differently. We need separate plans for the individuals and therefore the faculty and facilities need to reform and reshaped.


DR. Tufail, Pro VC, NED University Karachi said we should reduce credit hours so that the over-occupation of the students is addressed as they are over-occupied. Also, we have to make the courses localized though some of the ingredients will be mandatory.
I am agreed with Dr. Valiuddin that we need to change as many interdisciplinary things are coming now so that the demand of the industry is addressed.


Dr. Tauha, VC MUET, Jamshoro said: Our faculty is not linked with the industry. Unfortunately, our faculty is busy producing papers and is not interested in linking it with the industry. Since they want to become professors, they focus on publications that will require them to achieve their objective. We need to become technology and industry-driven.


Also, universities should appoint people from industry people for industry liaison as the teachers can never deliver on this front. Then only, the process will go on and the industry will start trusting academia. Sumiltanesouly, we will be able to produce students for the industry.


Asim Shehryar, CEO of Ignite said we need to prepare students not only for jobs but also for other skills too. HEC made 35 business incubation centers in Pakistan. Can anyone tell us of any one product which turned successful in Pakistan or abroad? Ironically, these centers are being run by professors. How can they do it? Only industry people can run business incubation centers. We do it too but through the industry.


A participant was of the view that PEC can conduct a comprehensive survey to know what kind of skillset we need in Pakistan. The curriculum design should be based on the outcomes of the survey. The universities need to change themselves in view of modern demands and the industry.
Dr Samreen Hussein said that universities can send their faculty to industry and we did it in DUET, Karachi, and decided to send our faculty to the industry for a full semester. But the question is for how long can industry take it. We should look from both ends. Not only academia but the industry has also to come forward.


Dr. Zohaib Iqbal, President Pakistan Software Testing Board said all engineers irrespective of their discipline, need to learn IT skills as all the tools on based on it. The universities should focus on it. This will increase the employability of engineers.


The industry does not know what a professor can do in resolving their issues. Academia has to tell the industry what they can do for them.


Fawad Fiaz, MD Salaria & Sheikh Intl. Islamabad was of the view that in Pakistan, engineers are involved in operation and maintenance as we do have large-scale industries in Pakistan. Where we stand in the engineering industry. Companies like Siemens and ABB packed up and went. We don’t have standards here. We are importing millions of dollars worth of engineering parts and machinery.


The deliberations of both groups generated a set of recommendations which was presented in the moot in the concluding session.


Recommendations:
PEC & EAB should allow flexibility in taught credit hours (70% discipline related and 30% for industrial exposure and market skills)
Curriculum implementation should of 3/3.5 years followed by 6 months – One-year placement
Modify Accreditation Framework and Curriculum structure taking inspiration from international models as per national requirements
Universities should prioritize soft skill development and opportunities for graduates to showcase their talents through various student activities, competitions, and Capstone projects
Interdisciplinary streams and research should be encouraged
Industry Advisory Boards should be implemented in letter and spirit with their guidelines for Accreditation
PEC should conduct a survey in engineering industries for demand-supply analysis and future needs
PEC must play its role in establishing a framework for IP rights, standardization, and conformity assessment mechanism to meet export requirements.
Facilitation of industries by PEC in accordance with relevant provisions of the Act and Bylaws
Academic projects must have an impact on industrial and societal domains in terms of effective and affordable solutions/ Products
Academia industry linkages shall be enhanced by inviting the industry to share the problems and the academia proposing the effective solutions
The on-job training shall be conducted by PEC in collaboration with academia and industry
Proper evaluation and assessment mechanisms shall be developed to ensure the effectiveness of the OJT Program
OJT training modules also need to be updated on regular basis to meet the industry requirement
Four year Degree Program shall be coupled with after graduation one year OJT Program for smooth integration of requisite human resource
R & D component of industry needs to be strengthened with the help of academia by launching joint academia-industry ventures
Open-ended labs and other concepts of the Outcome-based education model under the Washington accord shall be linked with industrial aspects as per market demand
A mechanism shall be developed by PEC for facilitating short-term placement of Faculty in relevant industries
The national level requirement of engineers in various fields in both public and private sectors needs to be outlined enabling PEC to regulate engineering education effectively
Apart from participation in regular statutory bodies interaction with industry people shall be ensured in HEIs on a regular basis