Lahore: Several faculty members from the University of Sargodha have been recognized by the Higher Education Commission (HEC) for their inclusion in Stanford University's Global Top 2% Scientists List 2025 and for securing competitive research grants under the National Research Program for Universities (NRPU). The awards were presented during a ceremony at the Centre of Excellence in Molecular Biology, University of the Punjab.
According to the University of Sargodha, the ceremony was attended by Punjab Minister for Higher Education Rana Sikandar Hayat, HEC Chairman Prof Dr Niaz Ahmad Akhtar, Punjab Higher Education Commission Chairman Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan, Vice Chancellor UoS Prof Dr Qaisar Abbas, and vice chancellors from various universities across the country. Faculty members recognised for their inclusion in the prestigious list are Prof Dr Farooq Anwar and Dr Muhammad Imran Irfan from the Institute of Chemistry; Prof Dr Muhammad Nawaz Tahir, Dr Muhammad Ashfaq, and Dr Naveed Ahmed Noor from the Department of Physics; Dr Naseer Abbas Khan from MFK Noon Business School; Prof Dr Muhammad Usman Minhas from the Department of Pharmacy; Prof Dr Zafar Iqbal Khan from the Department of Botany; and Dr Muhammad Asam Riaz, Prof Dr Muhammad Ather Nadeem, and Dr Muhammad Arif from the College of Agriculture.
Additionally, Prof Dr Ahmad Raza Bilal, Director ORIC, Dr Misbah Hussain of the Department of Biotechnology, and Dr Iram Hafiz of the Institute of Chemistry were honoured for securing NRPU research grants. During his address, Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Qaisar Abbas congratulated the awardees and described the recognition as a matter of pride for the university. He noted that the achievements reflect the faculty's commitment to high-quality research and demonstrate the university's growing contribution to research, innovation, and knowledge creation. He expressed confidence that these accomplishments would further strengthen the university's research culture and encourage greater academic excellence in the future.