KARACHI, March 12: As many as 140 doctors from Sindh will go to Cuba for postgraduate training this year, said Gustavo Machine Gomez, the Cuban ambassador to Pakistan.

The ambassador was talking to Sindh Health Minister Syed Sardar Ahmad in the latter’s office on Monday. He said the Cuban government had increased the number of scholarships offered to Pakistan's medical graduates from 400 to 600 this year.

The scholarships for postgraduate training are being offered to students of the country, including Sindh, through the Higher Education Commission since 2005, the Cuban ambassador added, saying that 78 medical students from Sindh had gone to Cuba last year. The Sindh health minister expressed the hope that cooperation between the two countries in the field of health would continue further.

Apprising the ambassador about the steps taken by the Sindh government for the provision for basic health-care facilities in the rural and remotest parts of the province,

Syed Sardar Ahmed said that experienced medical professionals were offering the required assistance to the rural Sindh based needy patients through the satellite and internet as well.

The minister pointed out that in rural areas most of the patients suffered from mental diseases or were maternity patients and in case of accidents people had to suffer agony for not having access to city hospitals but with the tele-medicine system most of the difficulties would be overcome.

The minister also said that to eliminate polio from Pakistan, the EPI had been campaigning continuously.