RAWALPINDI: As many as 108 new educational institutions would be established in 44 cantonment areas while the health facilities would also be upgraded by establishing medical colleges and upgrade general hospital/dispensaries, said Dr Saima Shah, director of ML&C Rawalpindi.
In a media briefing here at the Regional Office, she said that on the special directives of Director General (DG) of Military Lands and Cantonments (ML&C) Major General Syed Najamul Hassan, the General Hospital in Rawalpindi Cantonment is also being upgraded. All out efforts would be made to achieve the set targets, she added.
Major General Najamul Hassan has directed the authorities to complete the task in accordance with the master plan, she said. On the occasion, RCB CEO Sibtain Raza and RCB Additional CEO Arslan Haider were also present. Dr Saima told the media that in 1975 there were total 124 educational institutions including 13 colleges, 47 high and 23 primary schools in the cantonment areas while this number came on decline gradually resulting zero CB College in the cantonments.
Similarly, only seven high, 12 middle and 14 primary schools left. Najamul Hassan after taking over charge of the director general issued special instructions and formulated a three-year, 2016-19, plan according to which 127 new colleges, 17 CB girls high schools, three CB boys high schools and three primary schools would be completed under first phase.
In the current fiscal year, 14 new colleges, 22 CB high (boys/girls) schools would be established under the auspicious of DGML&C. She said efforts would be made for promotion of quality education and the standards like Army Public School would be tried to maintain in the CB educational institutions.
She further elaborated that eight cantonment general hospitals, five dispensaries/CGHs and 21 dispensaries in various cantonment areas where no health facility is available, would be established as a comprehensive master plan regarding up-gradation of the health services has been prepared and swiftly being executed.
Dr Saima said that under the first phase, Cantt general hospitals of Rawalpindi, Peshawar and Lahore are being upgraded where state of the art health facilities would be provided to the citizens. The plan envisaged strategy to financially strengthen and make the institutions self-sustainable by establishing medical colleges to make cantonment hospitals as teaching hospitals. This will help lessen the financial burden over the meager resources of the cantonments.
She said that CGH Rawalpindi was being upgraded with a special grant provided by the federal government amounting to Rs 570 million. Rs 115 million were also allocated during 2017-18 while the same amount (Rs 115 mln) per year will also be provided for CGH by the federal government till 2022-23.