SOUTH WAZIRISTAN: Residents of Upper South Waziristan continue to suffer from the absence of essential healthcare facilities as the district, comprising eight tehsils, still lacks both DHQ hospital and postmortem facility.

Hundreds of thousands of residents remain deprived of basic medical services, forcing families to transport bodies to other districts for autopsy in the event of accidental or unnatural deaths, a process both painful and costly.

According to sources, construction work on the Category-D Hospital in Tanak Narah, Kaniguram, began in 2004, yet the project remains incomplete even after 21 years. Approximately 80 per cent of the construction has been completed, but the project has reportedly been left in limbo due to official negligence and lack of funding. Local residents have urged the provincial government to expedite the completion of the hospital to ensure access to proper medical care.

Speaking at a press conference at the Kaniguram Press Club the other day, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam leader Malik Saeed Anwar Mehsud, PPP district president Shams Mehsud, tribal elder Malik Abdul Qadeer Burki and other community representatives expressed grave concern over the deteriorating state of healthcare in the district.

They pointed out that in the absence of a district headquarters hospital, even patients with minor ailments were compelled to travel long distances to Dera Ismail Khan or Tank for treatment. The lack of a postmortem facility, they added, not only causes immense hardship to the bereaved families but also hampers the process of justice in criminal investigations.

Mr Saeed Anwar Mehsud said that the government had announced the construction of the Category-D Hospital in 2004, but despite two decades, the project has not been completed. “Most of the building, including the wards and OPD block, has already been constructed, but the remaining work has been stalled due to government indifference,” he added.

PPP district president Shams Mehsud described the healthcare situation in South Waziristan Upper as “alarming” and called upon the provincial government to immediately release funds to complete the project and deploy the required medical staff. He emphasised that providing healthcare was a fundamental responsibility of the state and that continued neglect could not be justified.

Published in Dawn, October 20th, 2025