LAHORE, Jan 11: The Punjab government has failed to solve the administrative and developmental issues of the Postgraduate Medical Institute and the Services Institute of Medical Sciences.

It is feared that the postgraduate institute will soon be displaced from its decades old campus on the 6-Birdwood Road, besides facing other problems, including de-recognition by the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council on the pretext of shortage of faculty, laboratory equipment and other infrastructure.

The Punjab government had recently transferred seven professors of the PGMI to the SIMS, causing an acute shortage of teaching staff. It is learnt that 60 teaching posts are currently lying vacant out of 90 posts at the PGMI.

"The institute's faculty has reduced to such level that it is fearing de-recognition by the PMDC," a PGMI official told Dawn. As the administrative and developmental affairs of both PGMI and SIMS remained unresolved, Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi constituted on Nov 11 last a four-member committee headed by the chief secretary to examine and determine their future requirements.

The planning and development department chairman, finance and health secretaries were also on the committee. The meeting, chaired by the CM, had decided that the SIMS and the PGMI would continue to function as separate institutions under their respective principals and BoMs. It decided that the future developmental requirements of both the institutions would carefully be examined and determined by the committee.

While formulating development proposals and schemes for both institutions, the meeting decided that efforts would be made to avoid wasteful expenditure by adopting optimal use of resources.

It had also decided that the Birdwood Road premises would remain exclusively with the SIMS according to an agreement whereas the PGMI would shift to the LGH. However, the PGMI was allowed to share the Birdwood Road Campus till its shifting arrangements.

Later on Jan 4, 2005, the chief secretary called a meeting and invited the principals (of both institutions) to present their points of view. The committee is yet to take a decision.

Meanwhile, the PGMI/LGH BoM on Tuesday expressed its grave concern over the en masse transfer of PGMI teaching staff, shortage of funds, facilities and space. The board meeting, chaired by Mehr Jewan Khan, said the transfer of the PGMI's seven professors to the SIMS had caused an acute shortage of faculty and there were apprehensions that the PMDC might de-recognize the PGMI.

It also observed that unavailability of budget had rendered its laboratory facilities inadequate. Similarly, it said the PGMI's library also needed to be upgraded and modernized to meet research requirements.

As the SIMS had been accommodated on the PGMI's Birdwood Road campus and given a maximum space for its offices as well, the board observed that the PGMI was now facing scarcity of space even for its offices. It demanded that the government should hand over at least two rooms in the administrative block back to the PGMI.

Talking to Dawn, a board member said it was perturbed over the en masse transfer of faculty. The board wanted that this premier institution should stay for imparting postgraduate medical education.

He said the board had called for immediate posting of required teaching staff at the PGMI or approval to appoint teaching staff through special selection board.

It also called for the provision of sufficient budget for the research and laboratory facilities, besides upgrade of its library. The board agreed that it would prepare a PC-1 for the construction of the PGMI's new building on a 20-kanal tract on the LGH campus. The PC-1 will also include equipment and personnel requirements of the institution.