PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet on Friday approved the holding of the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) through the public sector Educational Testing and Evaluation Agency (Etea) starting from 2027 onwards.

The cabinet met with Chief Minister Sohail Afridi, and ministers, the chief secretary, administrative secretaries and other officials attended the meeting.

Briefing media about the cabinet decisions, information minister Shafi Jan said that a committee had been formed to examine the technical and legal aspects of the transition.

The cabinet was informed that Etea currently operated 60 registered Computer Based Testing (CBT) centres across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the country, with a daily testing capacity of 26,000 candidates.

Rs1bn okayed for rehab of flood-hit infrastructure; e-bike scheme for women on the cards

Mr Jan said that Section 4(1)(a) of the Etea Ordinance, 2001, empowered the Agency to conduct admission tests for professional colleges and that Etea, having transitioned to CBT since September 2024, has so far conducted over 1,300 tests for approximately 500,000 candidates.

Also, the cabinet approved the establishment of a new tehsil in Charsadda district to be named Umarzai.

It also okayed the formation of a committee comprising representatives of the Board of Revenue, local government, planning and development and finance departments to formulate criteria governing future changes to administrative units, including divisions, sub-divisions, tehsils and sub-tehsils, ensuring that such changes are made strictly in line with public interest and administrative need.

The cabinet approved the Transport Monetisation Policy for judicial officers and gave approval for forwarding Joint Resolution No. 240 of the provincial assembly to the federal government.

The Annual Report of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Revenue Authority for the financial year 2024-25 was also presented and approved during the meeting.

Regarding the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Flood Resilience Project, the cabinet permitted the relevant department to approach the World Bank (IDA) for financing in accordance with Islamic banking principles.

Also, it approved a sum of Rs1 billion for the rehabilitation of flood-affected infrastructure, including Rs500 million earmarked specifically for districts of Chitral.

The cabinet approved, as a special case, the enhancement of the compensation package for Shaheed Maulana Mirza Jan of Wana to Rs10 million.

It also constituted a cabinet committee to develop proposals for the universal registration of tri-wheelers across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, along with an effective mechanism to mitigate the burden of unregulated tri-wheeler traffic in urban areas.

The cabinet approved appointments to two vacant commissioner posts in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Right to Public Services Commission, along with certain amendments to the West Pakistan Registration Rules, 1929.

It also approved the creation of 46 contract-based posts for service delivery centres in Lakki Marwat, Tank, Buner, Karak, Battagram, Charsadda and Abbottabad. A grant of Rs5 million was also approved for the Khyber District Bar Association.

In the health sector, the cabinet approved the rationalisation and redeployment of full body scanners across various hospitals.

It also allowed the transfer of previously approved financial assistance to the personal bank accounts of three applicants, in place of hospital accounts, subject to verification and approved the provision of funds for eye care equipment at the MTI District Headquarters Hospital, Bannu.

The cabinet also approved bridge financing for the remaining construction work of the Khyber Institute of Child Health.

In addition, the cabinet approved a working procedure allowing the forest department to dispose of the remaining balance of timber - harvested under the now-defunct Dry Standing and Wind Fallen Trees Policy - in a transparent manner.

It also approved the provision of additional funds to cover enhanced customs duties, taxes and import charges for the procurement of 54 additional buses for the Peshawar Bus Rapid Transit system.

The cabinet granted concurrence to the Gavi 6.0 Vaccine Portfolio Optimisation and Prioritisation initiative concerning the hexavalent vaccine, PCV-14, DPT booster dose and hepatitis-B birth dose. The approval will also enable the country to switch from multiple antigens into a single dose.

CM Afridi told the forum that the Supreme Court had issued directions regarding the treatment of former prime minister Imran Khan, requiring that he be treated at Shifa International Hospital in the presence of his sister and personal doctors, according to an official statement.

He, however, regretted that the federal government had failed to implement the court’s order on Mr Imran’s treatment.

The chief minister said that instead of complying with the court’s directions, the federal government had resorted to a “fraudulent” compliance, with Imran Khan being taken to the hospital at night with the lights switched off. He said the situation surrounding the PTI founder’s health was a matter of serious concern for the provincial government.

Mr Afridi also announced that his government was introducing an electric bike scheme for women across the province.

Under the initiative, female students attending colleges and universities, as well as working women, would be provided electric bikes by the provincial government.

The chief minister said that the first phase of the scheme would be launched shortly and that the allocation of electric bikes would be made strictly on merit.

He also announced that the provincial government would subsequently introduce an electric-rickshaw scheme.

“The transition towards electric mobility will contribute to a cleaner and greener environment in the province,” he said.

Mr Afridi said directions had already been issued to accelerate work on the electric-bus scheme for divisional headquarters.

Published in Dawn, August 29th, 2026