Setting up new medical colleges: all PMDC conditions being fulfilled

Parliamentary Secretary Health Dr Saeed Elahi has said that all conditions for the approval of the four new medical colleges set up by the Punjab government including D.G Khan Medical College, Sahiwal Medical College, Khawja Safdar Medical College (PMDC), Sialkot and Gujranwala Medical College from Pakistan Medical and Dental Council have been fulfilled and the fee for the inspection and the relevant documents are being deposited.
He said an Additional Secretary of Health Department will go to PMDC office tomorrow and personally deposit these documents after which these colleges will soon be approved after the inspection. He said principals, teaching and other staff have been appointed in all the four medical colleges while laboratory equipment and books for library have also been provided. He said the most important condition for the approval of these colleges was attached hospitals, which are already approved.
He said district hospitals attached with these colleges are approved by PMDC and doctors and postgraduate level doctors are completing their training and there is no hurdle in the training of under graduate level doctors in these hospitals. Dr Saeed Elahi said that propaganda regarding these four new medical colleges is baseless and contrary to the facts. He said that previous governments also established medical colleges first and the approval was taken later after completing all formalities.
He said that government had started medical colleges in ordinary buildings thirty years ago which are now of international repute. He said that these four medical colleges will soon get prominent position in national and international level. He said that Punjab government will set up four more medical colleges next year so that according to the vision of Chief Minister Punjab, students belonging to backward areas of the province could get quality education.
He said that private medical colleges receive fees from Rs 0.5 to 1 million annually whereas students studying in government medical colleges have to pay fees of only few thousand rupees. He said that Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif is determined to promote education so that poorest students could get higher education without any discrimination.