Govt takes control of Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute

LAHORE: The autonomy of Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute (PKLI) & Research Centre has ended after its control was handed over to the provincial government.

After passage of a bill by the Punjab Assembly, the board of trustees of the 820-bed PKLI was dissolved.

Under the new set-up in future, the Punjab government will run PKLI by a board of governors (BoG) like that of Jinnah Hospital, Services Hospital and other public sector hospitals.

Lately, the Supreme Court in February dissolved the managing body of Pakistan Kidney and Liver Institute in a suo moto case pertaining to misappropriation and irregularities of funds.

The then Chief Justice of Pakistan Mian Saqib Nisar had remarked during a case hearing, “We want the government to run the hospital, instead of handing it over to a trust.” He stated that it was the matter of the lives of people, “hence we want to help out.”

According to a report of the anti-corruption department, consultant and the staff of PKLI were heavily paid for the project but no work was done.

It said the administration did not penalize contractor for delay in initiation of work. The national kitty suffered losses due to negligence of the administration, the report points out.