LAHORE: In a major development, the Punjab cabinet has reinstated 150-year old status of the King Edward Medical College (KEMC) that it had ‘lost’ in 2006 when the college was upgraded as university during the tenure of the then chief minister, Chaudhry Parvez Elahi.

An approval to revive the status as college was granted by the cabinet committee at its meeting chaired by Chief Minister Usman Buzdar on Tuesday. The KEMC has been restored when Chaudhry Parvez Elahi is the Punjab Assembly speaker.

Under the new initiative, all the assets of the King Edward Medical University shall be transferred back to the KEMC while the varsity would continue to conduct research and exams only.

Established in 1860, the King Edward Medical College was the oldest educational institute in Pakistan and the fourth oldest medical school in South Asia, after Medical College Kolkata (Jan 28, 1835), Madras Medical College, Chennai (Feb 2, 1835) and Grant Medical College, Bombay (1845).

After elevation from College to the University, a strong movement was launched by the eminent graduates and five former principals of the KEMC with a heavy mandate of other old Kemcolians to bring back the ‘glory’ to the 150-year-old institution.

Meanwhile, the deteriorating standards of the KEMU prompted the old and young Kemcolians and some faculty members, followed by medical and health organisations, to motivate the medical community through distributing pamphlets, text messages, and using a leading social networking site for highlighting the college’s 150-year perspective.

Following the long-standing demand of these medics, the Punjab government moved a summary on Oct 12 this year for KEMU (amendment) Ordinance 2020.

“The administrative department proposes King Edward Medical University Act 2005 to revive the separate identity of the King Edward Medical College to attach the teaching hospital (s) with the College and to strengthen the control of the government over the hospitals attached to the College,” reads the summary.

It further stated that the chief minister may be pleased to allow the placement of the legislative proposal before the standing committee of the cabinet on legislative business for approval in principle in terms of sub rule (1) of rule 33 of the Punjab Government Rules of Business 2011.

Tuesday’s decision of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf was lauded by the senior faculty members of the institution and the old Kemcolians.

The eminent professors who had served the KEMC as its principal included Prof Dr Mahmood Ali Malik (1997-98), Prof Dr M Akhtar Khan (1973-79), Prof Dr Iftikhar Ahmad (1986-89), Prof Ijaz Ahsan (1994-95) and Prof Naseer Mahmud Akhtar, (1995-97).

An old Kemcolian commented that the KEMC was among four other institutions established by British rulers in 1860 in Indian subcontinent. He lamented that the trend/culture to abolish the glory, grandeur and historic perspective of the old institutions would destroy their separate identity.

Published in Dawn, November 18th, 2020