ISLAMABAD: Ending a controversy regarding the land of Shifa International Hospital (SIH), Minister of State for Health Dr Malik Mukhtar Ahmad Bharath has claimed that the land was allotted on an investment basis rather than as a charitable trust grant.

SIH is one of the country’s leading private hospitals in Islamabad, but over the last two decades, a controversy has been ongoing that the land was allotted to build a trust at concessional rates, so there should be free-of-charge or subsidised treatment.

According to a reply submitted by Dr Bharath in response to a question from Member National Assembly (MNA) Sahibzada Sibghatullah during the question hour in the National Assembly, land for the hospital was allotted in 1987 on an investment basis rather than as a charitable trust grant.

However, the state minister admitted that the land was provided at a significantly reduced price with the understanding that a modern hospital would be established in the capital.

He said that the idea was that a state-of-the-art hospital would be built in the federal capital. “Moreover, there was a commitment by Shifa that an investment of $2 million would be made at that time,” he said.

According to information available on the website of SIH, the hospital is a 550-bed quaternary care healthcare facility, offering services to local as well as international patients for over 30 years. It has received prestigious Joint Commission International (JCI) accreditation.

The idea of SIH was conceived by a team of expatriate healthcare professionals in 1985 in New York, USA.

Their objective was to provide international standard medical care to the people of Pakistan.

After much discussion, it was decided to begin this project in Islamabad. In 1987, the hospital was incorporated as a Private Limited Company and was later converted into a Public Limited Company, as the only hospital listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange. Shifa was officially opened in 1993, with 8 OPD clinics and 36 beds.

Published in Dawn, May 16th, 2025