PESHAWAR: The provincial government will pay Rs53.212 million to Pakistan Medical and Dental Council to get registered the students, who were admitted to medical and dental colleges on the seats exceeding the allocated quota in academic year 2008-09.

Sources said that chief minister approved the summary, sent to him by health department, on Monday to pay the amount to PMDC and get registered the students, who were given admission when seats were not available in the colleges. The government had enrolled 30 students in dentistry department of Bacha Khan Medical College, which was established in January 2012, sources said.

They said that other medical colleges also admitted more students than the allotted quota and PMDC refused to grant registrations to them. It put the future of students at stake, they said.

Sources said that on the persuasion of PMDC members from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the students were asked to pay Rs57,000 per head to get registered and stand recognised.

Students were admitted on seats exceeding allocated quota

They said that health department had given an undertaking to PMDC that it would not allow colleges to induct more students while the principals of all public sector medical colleges were issued written instructions in that regard. The vice-chancellor of Khyber Medical University has also given undertaking that the students, who were admitted over and above the quota, would not be allowed to take the examinations.

Sources said that such students faced hardships. It was difficult for them to get a job even after graduation, they said. The colleges where extra seats were created received orders from competent authority, they added.

“The council will not accept any student in future owing to which government is taking extra care in admission to the existing 10 public sector medical colleges,” said Prof Ijaz, the vice-chancellor of KMU.

Prof Ijaz, who is also member of PMDC and chairman of admission committee to state-run medical colleges, said that two colleges were awaiting recognition. “We have included Nowshera Medical College and Gaju Khan Medical College, Swabi in the recently conducted entrance tests but subject to the recognition by PMDC,” he added.

The government has also ordered the health department to identify the persons, who accepted political pressure and violated rules and caused loss to public exchequer.

“Some of the students have graduated while the others are still in colleges. They are worried about their future. The government will allow admissions in colleges only when they are recognised,” said Prof Ijaz.

Sources in health department said that government ordered to allow the joint admission committee to select students for the medical and dental colleges and expedite efforts for recognition of the two more medical colleges to give admission to 200 students. “Currently the province produces 1,000 doctors in public sector colleges every year. The number would swell to 12,000 when Nowshera and Swabi colleges are recognised,” they said.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2016