Centre notifies takeover of major hospitals in Karachi, Lahore

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has issued a notification regarding the takeover of three majors hospitals in Karachi and one in Lahore, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

In a major development, the federal government has issued a notification to get administrative control of three hospitals in Karachi including Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC), National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) and National Institute of Child Health (NICH).

Moreover, the administrative control of Lahore’s Sheikh Zayed Federal Postgraduate Medical Institute was also restored to the federal government.

Read: MTI Ordinance will not privatise government hospitals, assures PM Khan

Prior to the issuance of the latest notification, JPMC was being administered by the federal government, however, its administrative powers had been transferred to provinces under 18th Amendment.

The recent decision to return the major hospitals in provincial capitals to the federal government was taken under medical teaching institution (MTI) ordinance.

Earlier, the Centre had handed over the administration of JPMC to the Sindh government before the ruling of the Supreme Court (SC) which handed over administrative powers of three hospitals in Karachi to the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination.

Read: Federal govt to take back control of three Karachi hospitals

The Supreme Court of Pakistan in its judgment had given the control of the three major public-sector hospitals – NICVD, JPMC and NICH – to the federal government and directed the provincial and federal governments to complete a smooth transition of the hospitals’ control in 90 days.

The verdict had been announced when the Sindh government and the health institutions approached the court with a claim that since the subject of health had been devolved to the provinces under the 18th Amendment, the management of the JPMC, NICVD and NICH also vested with the Sindh government.

However, the apex court had rejected the Sindh government’s plea in January 2019.