QUETTA, March 18: Chief Justice of the Balochistan High Court Mr Justice Amanullah Khan Yasinzai has taken notice of substandard medicines bought from shady pharmaceutical companies and said that strict action would be taken against health department officials.

He was inaugurating an anti-hepatitis centre set up under the Prime Minister’s Programme in Khuzdar district jail.

“Some officials of the health department are involved in this dirty business,” Chief Justice Amanullah Khan Yasinzai said, adding that in future, medicines supplied by the health department would be tested before sending them to hospitals.

Dr Chakar Khan Zehri of the Khuzdar jail, who launched the programme, said that under the programme, Rs20,000 would be spent on each patient every month and the federal government would provide funds for the purpose.

The Balochistan High Court Chief Justice said that the government would spend Rs66 million for providing facilities to prisoners. He said that under the programme, a water purification plant would be set for assuring supply of clean water to the prisoners. Waiting rooms, two vocational training centres and two small factories would also be set up.

The Chief Justice of Balochistan also inaugurated a video conference hall of the Khuzdar Engineering University that was completed with the assistance of the Higher Education Commission which had provided Rs10 million for the project.