NIP to remain in future: Ashiq
By Hina Kiyani

ISLAMABAD—National Internship Programme (NIP) is going on smoothly and it will continue its operations to facilitate fresh and unemployed graduates to get training through the programme.
“The programme has been helping the youth to acquire additional knowledge and skills which will enable them get respectable jobs in future,” Director General of NIP Ashiq Hussain Abbasi told.
He categorically refuted the news published in a section of press that government had halted the programme. “The programme is going on the right direction towards shining the future of the youth and it will continue in future as well,” he remarked NIP has received over 71,000 applications from the fresh and unemployed postgraduates from all across the country, and its applications’ scrutiny process would be finalized within a few weeks. Of these, 44,207 applications were received through the email while 27,000 were received through post.
He said that during the scrutiny process the NIP administration would remove duplicate applications as some applicants have submitted applications both through email and by post.
Only those applications would be entertained which would fulfill the set criteria of the NIP, he added.
Ashiq Abbasi said that, the online submitted applications included 25,389 male and 18,818 female out of which 662 are from Federal Capital, 20,302 from Punjab, 8,636 from NWFP, 12,523 from Sindh, 512 from Balochistan, 291 from Northern Areas, 745 from FATA and 536 applications has been received from Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Due to the lack of staff, only seven members are scrutining the applications including supervisor. To a question, Ashiq Abbasi replied, preparation of experience certificates for Federal Capital candidates are in progress which would be issued to them after completion of their training. He informed that every year, over 50,000 youth complete sixteen years of education from recognized universities and degree awarding institutions in the country. A considerable time gap between the completion of education and job availability in majority of cases results in a sense of frustration and waste of potential energy among the educated youth, he added.
He categorically refuted the news published in a section of press that government had halted the programme. “The programme is going on the right direction towards shining the future of the youth and it will continue in future as well,” he remarked He said that during the scrutiny process the NIP administration would remove duplicate applications as some applicants have submitted applications both through email and by post.