The delayed cheque

Part 1

My visually impaired colleague Ali Tareen and I hardly reach the fourth floor of administration building of Karachi University. We both are here to seek information about the initiative through which government of Sindh has announced to compensate fee for disabled students. Ali is perspiring. We both take chairs. The concerned person appears and takes his chair. Ali and I have cleared entry test for M Phil programme and Ali has brought his admission slip along with him as a precautionary measure. This is because one has to be cautious while visiting university ‘bureaucrats', for they can ask for anything that might fall beyond the imagination of the person who is visiting the admin offices.

“G” asks the person with whom we are to meet, “what brings you here?”

Ali, quite humble in his tone, pays him ‘salam’ and inquires about the criterion for applying for fee compensation. Ali has brought his disability certificate with him. “Disabled already, yet need to certify that the person is disabled to add to his/her woes,” I often curse while seeing Ali carrying that certificate with him.

“Have you secured admission?” The person asks Ali.

“G sir, I have,” replies Ali.

Ali hands over the admission slip along with his disability certificate to the person. I curse myself again after I alight on the certificate once again.

“Bhai!” the person tells Ali, “first secure admission and pay admission fee which is four thousand and it's mandatory to pay.”

“Sir, government has made our education free,” Ali replies.

“Aray! Someone make this guy understand that first he should secure admission,” the person shouts and rubs his fingers on his forehead while cursing us (students) for our ignorance.

“Sir, this is our admission slip. Check it carefully,” I interrupt. I look at Ali while raising my eyebrow.

“Oh! Yes. It’s,” admits the person while chuckling over his stupidity.

Two things are observable in this scenario.  The infrastructural misplacement is the first problem that I have been observing. Office to facilitate the disabled students is at fourth floor! The building, on the other hand, does not have any lift facility. Second problem, which I have been quite acquainted with, is the attitude of the university ‘bureaucrats’.

Ali does not have to pay semester fee after his fee is compensated. I have secured an indigenous scholarship. Thanks to Higher Education Commission. I have received 69,000 rupees, my first instalment. Following the first semester, I have been engaged in filling different forms which are mandatory for auditing process. Second and third semesters have passed in auditing process. Finally, auditing is completed and I send the audited documents to HEC. After my audited documents are rejected twice, I am tired of the visits to various offices for auditing process. However, after receiving a detailed answer form HEC, I am able to evaluate the issues why HEC has rejected my documents continuously.

The problem has been the auditing of admission fee that I had paid initially. HEC has paid 36700 rupees to university which I have come know about after a year. “Finally, I have come to know about the exact issue. I have to hurry to get the auditing process completed,” I say.

January 2020, auditing office

“Why are you here? We have audited your documents already,” the concerned person asks me angrily.

“Sir, HEC has sent me details of cheque which was directly paid to university during my first semester. It’s my admission fee paid to university. Now, I have to audit it,” I reply to the person.

He guides me to the fourth floor. I reach office of auditing officer who is busy on a call. After a short introductory talk, he asks me to show him the documents and proof that HEC has submitted my fee to the university.

“O khuda k banday (Hello God’s creature)! First claim your amount,” the officer scolds me in an ‘admonishing’ manner.

“Sure sir,” I nod in positive, “what should I do for this?” 

“Write a letter to Directer Finance (DF) requesting him to reimburse fee that you have paid to university. And, do make photocopy set of the relevant documents and submit it here,” he guides me further.

After an hour I submit my letter to auditing officer and he guides me to get the letter signed by Director Finance. I do it just in few minutes. documents are submitted in BURSAR office and I am instructed to visit after one week.

After one week

I am at BURSAR office after an hour-long drive on bike. I take one hour to reach university. I travel 35 km to reach. The journey in a hot weather is irritating as I travel from Hub city to my Alma Matter. Indeed, it’s an inter-provincial travelling!

“Han g, what brings you here,” asks the officer, as if I were to meet him after one year.

“Sir, I am Ayaz Khan who submitted his documents last week and you asked me to be here after one week,” I humbly reply.

“Acha! Ayaz, yar,,, I,,, I forgot to process your documents. It was a busy week. You should visit after this week,” the officer replies oblivious of my long irritating drive on bike.

I nod and leave.