QUETTA / ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) on Thursday agreed to register students enrolled in the three public sector medical colleges of Balochistan.

The three colleges — namely Jhalawan Medical College in Khuzdar, Makran Medical College in Turbat, and Loralai Medical College in Loralai — were recognised and registered with the commission in December.

However, the PMC was not willing to recognise the students enrolled in these colleges before the registration. Around 600 male and female students are studying in these colleges, which became operational in 2017, after taking proper entry tests.

The PMC wanted the students to take fresh tests for registration with the commission — a condition protested by the students.

Commission was reluctant to recognise students enrolled before colleges’ registration

Last month, the provincial chief and health secretaries and college principals gave a detailed briefing to the PMC on the issue and it was decided that matter would be further discussed in the next meeting.

On Thursday, a follow-up meeting was held between a delegation of the Balochistan government and the PMC to resolve the matter. The meeting, chaired by PMC President Dr Arshad Taqi, was attended by provincial chief and health secretaries, principals of public medical colleges of Balochistan, and PMC officials, including its vice president Ali Raza, secretary and executive member.

It was agreed that the students whose registration was at stake would be recognised by the PMC.

The papers of each professional exam given by the students of these colleges in 2021-22 were deposited with the commission, whose education department will immediately review the papers to verify the exam process and will provisionally register the students of three colleges on completion of the review of the papers.

NIH’s role highlighted

Meanwhile, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Health Dr Faisal Sultan said the National Institute of Health (NIH) had a key role in disease control and prevention.

In a meeting of the institute’s board of governors, Dr Sultan said he hoped the institute would be transformed under the new NIH Act.

The meeting was chaired by Dr Zulfiqar Bhutta and attended by Federal Health Secretary Aamir Ashraf Khawaja, Surgeon General of Pakistan Nigar Johar, and other board members.

The meeting deliberated on NIH’s overall organisational structure and vision of its constituent institutes.

Published in Dawn, March 11th, 2022