MUZAFFARABAD, April 28: The Punjab government has allocated 10 additional seats in the medical colleges of the province for the students of Azad Jammu and Kashmir, a handout issued here on Monday said.

According to the handout, Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, on the summary of the provincial health department, approved the allocation of the additional seats for the Kashmiri students as one-time dispensation for the session 2002-2003.

AJK Prime Minister Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan had requested the chief minister for the additional seats.

The Punjab health department has asked the Secretary of AJK nomination board for conveying the nominations.

These 10 seats are in addition to the 66 seats already reserved for the AJK students in different medical colleges of Pakistan.

Last year, the Punjab government had allocated 10 additional seats for the AJK students.

The AJK premier, said the handout, had also written letters to the chief ministers of the NWFP and Balochistan for allocation of more seats for Kashmiri students in the medical colleges of their respective provinces.