LAHORE, Dec 23: A trust has handed over 26-acre land what sources called donated by the government to the trust to set up a hospital and educational institutions in Township to a private party to establish and run a medical college on commercial basis there, Dawn has learnt on Sunday.

According to an agreement deed between Chuadhry Rehmat Ali Memorial Trust and the private party, the former will make available adequate space to the latter to construct a medical college, its allied institutions and buildings necessary for providing medical education and other facilities. It may also set up para-medical and nursing institutions on the site.

“The private party will initially pay Rs7,500 per medical student, Rs3,000 per dental student, Rs2,000 per nursing student and Rs1,000 per para-medical student to the trust on annual basis out of the fee it will collect from students of the respective institutions,” a clause of the agreement says.

The agreement says that the private party will upgrade the patient care and other facilities in the trust’s hospital and provide medical relief to the general public and also raise the standard of hospital to the level fit for imparting training to medical students and staff.

It may also construct new hospital blocks and improve the existing premises on the request of the trust besides providing and maintaining necessary equipment and other infrastructure in order to provide better treatment to patients and training to students in the proposed medical college.

“The private party is authorised to collect all kind of fees and charges from students as prescribed by the Academic Council and also deal with the university and other institutions whether national or international with regard to educational and other routine academic affairs of the students and staff of the college,” it added.

The private party shall furnish security/guarantee for Rs1 million to the trust at the time of execution of the agreement for due performance of the agreement. The security shall be released on passing out of first batch of medical graduates of the college. “The private party or its officials will not issue any statement to the media or through any other means detrimental to the objectives\reputation of the trust in any manner. “

“The hospital shall continue to remain under the management of the trust and the existing and future staff of the hospital and trust will work under the relevant service rules of the trust and only it (trust) may make any alteration/amendments to their service structure.

In order to deal with day-to-day affairs of college, its allied institutions and the hospital, a four-member management committee will be formed with two members nominated by the trust and the rest by the private party. “The tenure of the agreement will be for a period of 37 years from the date of signatures by both the parties.”

Trust sources told Dawn that the government had provided 26 acres of land to the trust in 1986 to set up a hospital and educational institutions.

He informed that the trust could establish a medical institution but it could not allow any private party to run it on “commercial basis”.

The trust’s president, Justice C A Rehman (retired), said it had signed an agreement with the private party after meeting all legal formalities.