ملت ابراہیمی کے احیاء کےلیے حضرت عبدالمطلب کی کاوشیں قرآن کی روشنی میں : ایک تحقیقی مطالعہ Efforts of Hazrat Abd al-Muṭṭalib for the Revival of Millat-e-Ibrāhimī in the Light of the Qur’ān: An Exploratory Study

This exploratory study delves into the remarkable efforts of Hazrat Abd al-Muttalib, the revered grandfather of the Holy Prophet Muhammad, in rejuvenating the Millat-e-Ibrahimi, the Abrahamic faith, in pre-Islamic Arabia. This study investigates the pivotal role played by Hazrat Abd al-Muttalib in preserving and strengthening the monotheistic beliefs of his forefathers, Abraham and Ishmael, against the backdrop of a polytheistic society. Drawing from historical accounts, oral traditions, and early Islamic sources, the research uncovers the strategies and initiatives employed by Hazrat Abd al-Muttalib to foster unity among the disparate Arabian tribes and uphold the principles of monotheism. This study sheds light on a crucial yet often understudied period in Islamic history, exploring the legacy of Hazrat Abd al-Muttalib as a precursor to the prophethood of his grandson, the Holy Prophet Muhammad. By examining his actions and their impact, it provides valuable insights into the early foundations of the Islamic faith and the broader context of religious development in the Arabian Peninsula. Keywords: Hazrat Abd al-Muṭṭalib, Millat-e-Ibrāhimī, Abrahamic faith, Pre-Islamic Arabia, Monotheism, Revival efforts, Arabian tribes۔

Contextual Analysis of Implementation of Tenure Track System in Higher Education Institutions of Pakistan: A Reform Perspective

Tenure Track System was introduced in Pakistan in the year 2004 following the New Public Management led higher education reforms in 2002. Focusing on this intervention, the study aimed to assess and evaluate the Tenure Track System implementation in higher education institutions (HEI’s) exploring its implementation status, identifying challenges faced by stakeholders, role of institutional factors in this regard, any provincial variations in implementation and to get an overall idea regarding effectiveness of the performance oriented reform in actually improving teaching and research performance in higher education institutions of Pakistan, and lastly the analysis of the importance of contextual factors involved in reform implementation. TTS reform was brought basically as an alternate to the conventional Basic Pay Scale System prevalent in the entire public sector universities of Pakistan. The basic idea behind this reform initiative was to induce a spirit of research, and performance based pay mechanism in the higher education sector. As far as the significance is concerned, firstly, due to limited studies on the subject, this research would add to the existing knowledge, contributing to the idea of entrepreneurial spirit and efficiency in the education sector. Secondly, being an implementation study of a key reform, it would provide a ready feedback for Higher Education Commission of Pakistan and the related policy makers who may use the findings of this research for improvements in the mechanisms associated with tenure track system and its effective implementation in Pakistan. In order to meet the objectives and answer the research questions, a mixed method research strategy has been followed for this study, where both quantitative and qualitative data have been collected and analyzed. In this study, the data were collected from 6 universities, one each from provincial capitals of Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, two from the Balochistan province (due to low response rate) and one from the federal capital. Moreover, stakeholders from the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, the premier regulatory body for higher education in the country were also included in the study. As data collection streams vary sampling strategy varied, a total of 39 interviews were conducted using purposive/stakeholder sampling and the researcher collected data from 344 respondents using quota sampling. A variety of statistical tools were applied on quantitative data using SPSS to answer the relevant research questions and a thematic analysis was conducted on the qualitative data using NVIVO. Based on the analysis of primary and secondary data several issues were identified in connection to general reform implementation and implementation of the TTS reform. In order to answer the research questions and elaborate the findings, the Institutional Perspective and Resource Dependency Theory were utilized. Some of the major findings include, ignorance of context and prerequisites of this reform, ambiguities in the statutes, lack of comprehension on part of stakeholders, capacity issues of universities as well as the regulatory body, lack of accountability, non-uniform implementation, lack of social security and post-retirement benefits associated with TTS, serious trust deficit among stakeholders, non-compliance to rules, deviation from the true spirit of the reform, path dependency, leadership issues, myth and legitimacy, cultural non-alignment, politics, absence of a mechanism for policy implementers accountability and geographical proximity, etc. Towards the end, some suggestions and recommendations have been suggested to ensure development of strategies that may improve the idea of reform management and implementation in Pakistan, particularly the tenure track system, some of these include abandoning of a parallel system, depoliticizing of public sector organizations, increased research budgets, focus on teaching in parallel to research, development of service structure, steps for increasing ownership of reform agendas i.e. revival of commitment and political will, further promotion of research culture, removal of ambiguities in rules/statutes, focus on quality instead of quantity, autonomy for universities, decentralization and strengthening of regional offices of the regulatory body, inclusion of pensions and realignment of reform agenda keeping in view cultural norms of the society without compromising performance and efficiency and outcome agenda. Lastly, it is reiterated that a potentially successful policy or reform is one that has a feature of adaptability in it so that various complexities can be dealt at local level, keeping the reform aligned with the context for which a reform is intended.