FOR a population of three million Bahawalpur division has only one nuclear medicine institute known as Bahawalpur Institute of Nuclear Oncology (BINO) and that too is without essential medicines.

Being a practising doctor, I keep on referring poor patients, suffering from thyroid cancer and other thyroid diseases, to this state-owned institution, but unfortunately Bahawalpur Institute of Nuclear Oncology (BINO) is reportedly without its radio iodine supply for the past many months.

On contacting BINO's local authorities, I was told that the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC), Islamabad, which runs these nuclear hospitals across the country, had not been able to deliver the medicine to its BINO hospital due to some transportation and procedural hurdles for past many months.

Going by the book this must be delivered every month regularly. It is sheer injustice to three million people that red tapism has been made their lot.

The Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission should realise that it is the peaceful use of nuclear technology which can bring a much better name to this national institute.

DR HASSAN MABROOR

Bahawalpur