July 15, 2007	Sunday	Jamadi-us-Sani 29, 1428

RAWALPINDI, July 14: The city district government would set up 175 filter clinics in the district at a cost of Rs210 million this fiscal year. The fund in this regard has been allocated in the district budget for 2007-08, said City Nazim Raja Javed Ikhlas while talking to a delegation of journalists from Sindh who called on him here on Saturday at his office.

The nazim was also flanked by DCO Rawalpindi Irfan Elahi who also briefed the journalists about the development projects in the district.

The nazim said a filter clinic would be a mobile clinic with a qualified medical doctor, lady health visitor, nurses and paramedical staff. Each would cost Rs1.3 million. The facility would be available round the clock.

Mr Ikhlas said a 60-bed hospital would be built near Chakri Road.

He said all the essential and life-saving drugs would be available at the filter clinics which he said would be provided to the patients free of cost under the directives of President General Musharraf.

Mr Ikhlas told the delegation that recently President Musharraf had approved Rs500 million for supply of electricity to 10 rural areas of the district saying that work on the schemes was going on that would be completed within two months.

The nazim said that Rawalpindi had been given Rs7 billion as “big city package” by Punjab Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi adding that work on the Rs1.2 billion Airport Road had been initiated.

To a question he said, the district had witnessed record improvement in health sector adding that the entire hospitals in the district were well-equipped and had been provided modern instruments besides appointing new physicians.

He said Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz had also provided huge funds for supplying gas facility to the far-flung areas of the district.