KARACHI, July 24: Seven years after the establishment of the Karachi Medical and Dental Collage, the city government has finally decided to construct the Phase-II of the building with its own resources, and the work is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2004.
The KMDC is the only medical and dental collage in the country, to be run by the local government department, but it is presently situated in two buildings. Some of its departments, including administration block, lecture hall, seminar room, dentistry block, pool and some recreational facilities are situated on the plot allotted to the college at Allama Rasheed Turabi Road, Block-M, North Nazimabad town, whereas the main college building is situated in a maternity home and dispensary in block- 16, F.B. Area, Gulberg Town. This building has the department of behavioural sciences, pathology department, chemistry department, pharmacology department, physiology and anatomy departments besides library, parts of dentistry and administration block.
Though the KMDC was set up in 1995, after the closure of the maternity home with a view that a new and proper college building would be built within a couple of years, but due to lack of resources and most important of all lack of initiative in the absence of elected representatives, the KMC council delayed the matter.
This delay deprived the residents of Gulberg town of the only public sector maternity home in the area, which has only three other under-functioning dispensaries. The KMDC, too, is under constant pressure from the PMDC as the PMDC had been pressuring the college to overcome the deficiencies: ie shortage of space and construction of anatomy, physiology and pharmacology departments.
The PMDC has also warned the college that it would lose recognition in case the deficiency persists, which would lead to a great loss to students and people of Karachi.
The total cost of construction of Phase-II Rs.132.30 million which includes construction of all college blocks situated in the maternity home building, F.B. Area, besides provision of a bank, post office and tuck shop, an auditorium with a capacity of 760 persons, mosque, gymnasium, two small flats for employees, animal quarters, workshop and other development works.
The covered area of Phase-II is 1,36,647 square feet while the total area of KMDC plot is 10.4 acres and construction is expected to be completed by July 2004.
The KMDC is the first and the only public sector dental college in the province and the first one which conducts its admission tests through IBA on merit.
According to the Principal of KMDC Dr. Sadia Aziz, the college has a good academic record of 90 per cent success rate and five batches of MBBS and four of BDS have successfully passed out.
Presently, the college has a capacity of only 50 students for MBBS and 30 for BDS, whereas the number of students would double after the completion of Phase-II. However, an increase in seats is subject to approval from provincial government, she added.
Administratively, the KMDC has been under the mayor / administrator of the KMC, presently the chairman of its governing body is Nazim Karachi.
Nazim Karachi Naimatullah Khan took keen interest in initiating the construction of Phase-II of the college and despite financial constraints of the city government, he directed the EDO Works and Services Brig. Zaheer Qadri to resolve all pending issues so that its PC-1 could be approved.
In 1991, the then Prime Minister of Pakistan had announced a federal grant of Rs120 million for the KMDC, out of its total cost of Rs147 at that time. The remaining cost was to be borne by the defunct KMC.
The KMC constructed the Phase-I of the KMDC at a cost of Rs52.83 million in 1998 through its resources but a grant of Rs120 million is yet to be paid by the federal government under the annual development programme despite obtaining a clearance from the PDWP and approval from the ECNEC in 1994.
Apart from getting the PC-1 approved, the EDO Works and Services has sent a reminder for the same through the Sindh health secretary in May this year, but did not receive a reply.
In his reminder, the EDO mentioned about the five letters written to the federal government in this regard which included one written by the Sindh chief secretary to the ministry of health in 1995, while the Sindh minister for local government, Dr. Farooq Sattar also wrote a letter to the federal finance minister in 1997.
The additional chief secretary (ACS) local government wrote to the federal finance secretary in 1997 and administrator (defunct) KMC wrote to the Sindh chief secretary in 1999, whereas the last letter mentioned in EDO’s reminder was written by ACS (development) to the federal finance secretary on April 10, 1999.—PPI
