08 August 2004	Sunday	21 Jamadi-us-Saani 1425

KARACHI, Aug 7: The Sindh government has finally decided to facilitate the expelled students of the Sindh Medical College to pursue their medical education at private institutions.

Official sources said that authorities - after re-verification of educational and related documents of the students concerned - were of the view that the expelled students of the SMC, whose educational certificates were genuine and who had fulfilled criteria of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council, should be issued NOCs for private medical institutions by the SMC principal.

About one and a half years back, admission of about 133 students of the SMC were questioned by the then chief minister's inspection team, following which their admissions and enrolments with the University of Karachi, alleged to be fake, were cancelled.

Of the 133 students, 38 belonged to first or second year classes, and had not taken any exams under the University of Karachi; while over 35 belonged to final year, who had cleared their respective exams. One student had also cleared his final year exams and was waiting for his degree.

In the meantime, students, whose admissions were cancelled in phases, had also staged demonstrations and long hunger strikes, and had approached various provincial and federal ministers and political figures and higher courts for restoration of their admissions at the SMC, but to no avail.

A source in the provincial health department said that a fresh consideration was made for the students at a recent meeting chaired by the Sindh governor, and it was decided that while doors to education for the said students be kept closed in government-run institutions, certain arrangements be made so that the same could complete their remaining studies at private institutions.

On fresh invitations, 76 students submitted their intermediate mark-sheets, matriculation certificates, PRCs and domiciles to the health department, which were finally referred to the chief minister inspection team for further processing.Some students, however, failed to avail the rechecking opportunity, while cases of eight students were dismissed after submitting fake mark-sheets, added the source.

A summary was also placed before the Sindh chief minister for granting permission to issue NOCs to students on humanitarian grounds, as they had already "suffered a lot during the last two years", it was further learnt.

When contacted, the SMC principal, Prof Noshad A Shaikh, told Dawn that he had received directives from the health department that NOCs, as drafted by the advocate general Sindh, be issued to the said students after obtaining undertakings from them.The students in question had already been provided with draft of theundertaking, which they would have to submit on a Rs100 stamp paper. While the NOCs were likely to be issued from August 9, he added.

The students were now required to give an undertaking that they had not filed any appeal against the judgment passed on May 18, 2004, and, if filed, had withdrawn the same unconditionally.

The draft also reads, "I further undertake that upon no objection being granted to me, I shall not utilize the same for any collateral or other purposes, and that I shall not in any manner, whatsoever, claim compensation or damages including, but not limited to, loss in the education period, from the government of Sindh, the Sindh Medical College, or the University of Karachi."

The principal said that NOCs would be granted to applicants without acceding to the fake admissions, only on humanitarian grounds, for taking admission in any private medical institution or college not affiliated to any government university or institution in any manner directly or indirectly.

The students would be entitled, subject to acceptance by the private university they would apply to, to take admission in the said institutions in the year after the last examination passed by them at the SMC, he mentioned.