CSS Corner offers free courses to local youth

The programme has produced 14 successful civil service officers in the last one year

Despite the famed complexity of the exam, youths in the provincial capital have started showing a growing interest in joining the civil services. Part of the mass inclination is credited to CSS officer Talha Saleem, who had set up two CSS exam preparation centres in Karachi last year, under the name of CSS Corner.

It should be recalled here, that the implementation of the quota system in the public sector in the 1970’s had discouraged urban youths from aspiring to join the Central Superior Services (CSS). The rural quota was increased to 60 per cent and the urban quota to 40 per cent, following which the citizens of Karachi and Hyderabad, dejectedly started turning to medical and engineering universities. This led to a drop in CSS aspirants in the province’s urban centres, while those who still dreamt of appearing in the exams could not afford to the hefty preparation fees charged by private academies.

To tackle this, Saleem founded the CSS Corner which is composed of two academies located within the Frere Hall Library and the Islamic Centre in Federal B area. These institutions have for the past one year, been offering four-month training courses to CSS aspirants free of cost, and have produced over 14 successful candidates so far. The successful students are all expected to undergo training in Lahore next month, following which they will be joining various federal departments in the capacity of CSS officers.

Speaking about his programme, Saleem, who currently serves as Deputy Commissioner Centeral, said that he was previously posted as Director General of Parks, Karachi. “DG Parks’ office is located within the Frere Hall, where I noticed several large rooms attached to the library that were empty. I’d taught CSS students privately in the past, so I wanted to utilise this vacant space to set up an academy where students can learn for free, as opposed to paying upwards of Rs70,000 at private academies, which most people cannot afford. I shared the idea with a group of friends, who all showed their confidence in me and guaranteed full corporation. Later, the plan was presented to the then Karachi Metropolitan Corporation Administrator Iftikhar Shalawani, who gladly gave his permission to set up an academy in the Frere Hall Library,” he recalled.

At present, the two centres have a combined seating capacity of 180 students, while 142 students are currently enrolled and preparing for their CSS exams. A majority of these students, especially females, belong to low, middle-income and mixed-income neighbourhoods like Federal B Area, Landhi, Korangi, Azizabad, New Karachi, North Karachi, Baldia Town, North Nazimabad, Garden and Lyari.

The public academy conducts classes from 3:00 PM to 9:00 PM six days a week, in addition to which lectures and resources are also regularly uploaded and updated on video hosting services like YouTube, on the CSS Conner’s channel.

All courses at the CSS Corner are taught by a voluntary staff of some 100 teachers, including current and former CSS officers and subject experts. Renowned diplomat Zafar Hilali, former Karachi Metropolitan Corporation Administrator and Commissioner Karachi Iftikhar Shalawani and senior bureaucrat Tariq Mustafa are also among the institution’s esteemed lecturers. “In addition to that, we have also signed an MoU with the Sailani Welfare Trust to set up more such centres in the city,” assured Saleem.

The students enrolled at the two academies also seem to show great trust in the institution. “It doesn’t look like free education is being provided here. The teachers teach with great sincerity, which is quite encouraging for the young aspirants,” shared one student.

Similarly Ghazal Bhutto, another student at the center at the Frere Hall Library, testified that the teacher’s commitment is reflected in the fact that they continue to take their classes even when the number of students is low. “They also provide individual attention to struggling students. Private academies on the other hand charge an arm and a leg, in comparison this centre is a gift for the city’s youth,” opined Bhutto.

Addressing the initiative, former Federal Urdu University Department of Mass Communication Chairperson Dr Tauseef Ahmad Khan applauded Saleem’s efforts towards providing free preparation of CSS exams in the city. “The quota system introduced in the 1970s had changed the face of the city and a large number of citizens had stopped taking the CSS exams. But this [the CSS Corner] will definitely benefit Karachi’s youths,” he expressed, while speaking to The Express Tribune.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 27th, 2021.