TAXILA: As many as eight state-of-the-art trauma centres will be established across Attock for provision of timely emergency services to victims of road fatalities, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister (SAPM) on Overseas Pakistanis and Human Resource Development Syed Zulfiqar Abbas Bukhari said while performing groundbreaking of the first centre at Tehsil Headquarters (THQ) Hospital in Fatehjang.

An amount of Rs15 million was allocated for the centre which will have the capacity to hold 16 beds. Other trauma centres will be established along G.T. Road near Islamabad - Peshawar Motorway.

Talking to the press, Mr Bukhari said establishment of this centre will help people in need of aid, adding, Fatehjang is located at a strategic location where various routes intertwine including Rawalpindi - Kohat Road, Islamabad - Peshawar Motorway, proposed Ring Road and CPEC.

He said the fatality ratio due to road accidents in Attock district, especially on roads passing through Fatehjang, is alarmingly high because it takes hours to rush critically injured people to hospitals located in Rawalpindi and Islamabad.

There is need to establish freestanding emergency centres on main highways of the city as there are no hospitals with proper trauma facilities in the district, he said, adding most accident victims pass away while they are being shifted to main hospitals in Islamabad and Rawalpindi.

It will be ensured by the government that the best treatment facilities are provided to people in these trauma centres, which are being established using funds provided by the Punjab government. He said beautification of Fatehjang city along with expansion of Fatehjang-Kohat road will also be completed during the current fiscal year.

Responding to a question, he said results of the GB elections have proved that PTI is the most popular party of the country, adding, holding elections under difficult circumstances was important.

Afterwards, he visited the proposed venue for Jinnah park where he was briefed by Deputy Commissioner Ali Annan Qammar about the project. He was told that this huge piece of land was used earlier as a dumping point for garbage, however it is now being converted into a park.

Mr Bukhari announced that the government will provide necessary funds for execution of the project.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2020