By Our Staff Reporter
LAHORE - The Punjab government with a view to resolving acute shortage of senior medical teachers has decided to give a three-year waiver in superannuation age of senior medical teachers for their appointment in medical colleges after their retirement.
However, the waiver will initially apply to four medical colleges.
According to sources, Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, who after approving a summary in this regard, has directed provincial health department to fill the vacant positions of medical teachers without any further delay.
The decision was taken following Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) took action against some of the public sector medical colleges where there was shortage of faculty members.
The Punjab government had to face embarrassment when the PMDC recently recommended closure of the Sahiwal Medical College, stopped admissions to the Shaikh Zayed Medical and Dental College, Lahore, and the Shaikh Zayed Medical College of Rahim Yar Khan, and put the Gujranwala Medical College in the list of “B” category because of persistent shortage of the teaching faculty.
Though the Punjab government has asked the PMDC to withdraw its actions against the medical colleges, the latter did not accede to its demand.
Later, Punjab government set up a committee under the chairmanship of chief secretary for finding out a solution to the problem.
The committee, comprising health, law and regulations wing secretaries, recommended to the government to increase the age limit to 63 years for the professors to fill the vacant positions. It had also proposed to fill all other vacant positions from senior registrar to the associate professors on an ad hoc basis.
The CM accorded approval to the recommendation of the committee.
Meanwhile, sources said that all the postings will be made on an ad hoc basis and the health department has directed the medical colleges to advertise the positions in accordance with the decision of the Punjab government.
Health Secretary Jawad Rafique Malik said that the shortage of faculty, particularly in the basic sciences subject, had put the future of medical students at stake.