August 16, 2007	Thursday	Sha’aban 2, 1428

ISLAMABAD, Aug 15: The federal minister for health, Muhammad Nasir Khan, informed the National Assembly on Wednesday that the administrative expenditure of the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) during the last three years was Rs1.9 billion, which included Rs771.128 million in salaries and allowances.

In a written reply to a question of the People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) MNA Fauzia Wahab, the minister said the administrative expenditure on Pims was Rs440.908 million in 2003- 04, Rs522.250 million in 2004-05 and Rs937.166 million in 2005- 06.

The minister said the staff at Pims were paid Rs307.357 million in salary in 2005-06, Rs257.771 million in 2004-05 and Rs206 million in 2003-04. Similarly, he said, the hospital administration paid Rs240.966 million as utility charges for gas, water and electricity in the last three years.

Responding to a question of PPP MNA Abdul Ghani Talpur, the health minister said the government was considering a proposal to set up urban clinics through a new development project titled ‘President

initiative for urban clinics’ at an estimated cost of Rs4.302 billion.

Replying to a question of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) MNA Farhana Khalid Banoori, the minister told the house that seven retired army officers were working in the ministry of health and its attached departments.

He also provided the names of those retired army officers namely: Maj-Gen (retired) Shahida Malik, director-general (health); Maj-Gen (retired) Masood Anwar, executive director National Institute of Health, Islamabad; Lt-Col (retired) Dr Azra Qureshi, principal CMT, Pims, Islamabad; Maj (retired) Jahanzeb Khan, deputy executive director, Pims, Islamabad; Maj (retired) Mohammad Ismail, senior lecturer, Pims, Islamabad; Lt-Col (retired) Tariq Uzair, project director National Institute of Cardio Vascular Diseases (NICVD), Karachi and Lt-Col (retired) Dr Muhammad Shafi Muhammad, deputy project director, NICVD, Karachi.

The minister, in reply to a question of PPP MNA Shagufta Jumani, said 509 HIV/Aids cases were reported in Sindh during the last one year.

RAILWAYS: In a written reply to a question of PPP MNA Fauzia Wahab, the federal minister for railways, Sheikh Rashid Ahmad, told the house that Pakistan Railways owns a total of 167,690.00 acres of land across the country.

Giving the breakup, he said the Pakistan Railways owned 11,679.02 acres in the Peshawar division; 21,428.41 acres in the Rawalpindi division; 28,431.79 acres in the Lahore division; 36,452.08 acres in the Multan division; 25,621.71 acres in the Sukkur division, 20,357.88 acres in the Karachi division and 23,718.21 acres in the Quetta division.