ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Secretariat on Tuesday set up a subcommittee to look into the longstanding issue of implementing provincial quotas in federal government jobs.

The subcommittee, chaired by Senator Javed Abbasi, will consider the point of public importance raised by Senator Dr Sikandar Mandhro about the implementation of the quota in new services the federal government is providing. The subcommittee will submit a report within 20 days.

The Senate committee was told by the Cabinet Division that it has yet to receive some of this information. However, the Cabinet Division confirmed to Senator Abbasi that the provincial quota in federal government jobs is not being fully implemented. The committee was told that people from Sindh, or those who have domiciles in Sindh, were appointed to 19pc of seats, which is a per cent and a half lower than the quota.

Read: Senate panel to take up non-observance of provincial job quotas

Committee directs extension of Pims Cardiac Centre doctors’ contracts, release of salaries

Dr Mandhro did not accept this figure, saying that while Punjab is supposed to have 50pc of the posts, records show it has 56pc. He said this shows that smaller provinces were not getting their share of jobs.

Senator Abbasi said it was unfair that small provinces were not getting their share.

“If 1pc share is reduced from the National Finance Commission, provinces will lose billions of rupees,” he said.

Senator Rubina Khalid said the matter has been discussed at many meetings and was becoming complicated after every meeting. She said a subcommittee should be formed to look into the issue.

Although he initially disagreed with the proposal, after hearing from other members committee chair Senator Talha Mehmood agreed to set up a subcommittee.

Pims Cardiac Centre doctors

The committee has also directed for the contracts of doctors working at the Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (Pims) Cardiac Centre to be extended, for their salaries to be released and for steps to be taken to regularise them.

The senators were informed in a briefing by a representative of the Ministry of National Health Services that the cardiac centre project ended in 2015.

Staff from BPS 1 to 15 were regularised, but nine doctors working at the centre have not been regularised. Two other doctors have found jobs elsewhere and are not concerned with regularisation.

Dr Mohammad Faisal, who has been working on contract, said he and his colleagues had been working for the past 15 years. They were asked to continue working at the centre even after the project concluded in 2015, he said.

“We should have been told that we were not required anymore. Now we are being told that we should appear in the Federal Public Service Commission (FPSC) exam, which is not fair as it is being said that only five additional marks will be given to us.

“We are trained doctors and after 15 years we may not have answers about whatever we read. However, we should be asked about our files. Our executive director, Dr Raja Amjad, has been supporting us and working for our regularisation,” he told the committee.

State Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Mohammad Khan suggested addressing the doctors’ issue on compassionate grounds.

Pims Executive Director Dr Amjad said that a cabinet committee should be established, just like the one chaired by Syed Khurshid Shah that was established in the past, which should regularise the employees.

“The other option is that the cases should be referred to the FPSC with the recommendation to look into their qualification and appoint them,” he said.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2019