SIALKOT-The ambulances of Govt Allama Iqbal Memorial Teaching Hospital and Pasrur Civil Hospital have been out of order for many years speaking volumes about the official negligence in this respect.
Most of the parts of ambulance (STH-8411) including the tyres, seats and engine etc have been stolen. The hospital management and Health Department remained unable to rectify the ambulance. Meanwhile, the hospital management claimed to have no funds for repairing of the ambulance.
Likewise, both of the ambulances of Pasrur THQ Civil Hospital are non-functional due to which the patients and their families have to suffer great ordeal in transportation of their parents.
The hospital caters to more than one million population of Pasrur tehsil. Pasrur city falls into the electoral constituency of Federal Minister for Law and Climate Change Zahid Hamid.
According to the hospital management, the old ambulance (X-67) had been lying out of order for the last one decade while the second ambulance (STJ-3779) had also gone out of order for the last one month.
Local people expressed grave concern over the situation. They urged the Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif to look into the matter in the larger public interest. When contacted, EDO (Health) Javaid Warraich admitted that both the ambulances were out of order. He said that Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif had released Rs.40 million special grant for the upgradation of Pasrur THQ Civil Hospital. He said that a new ambulance would soon be purchased for the hospital.
On the other side, the only water filtration plant of Govt Postgraduate College for Women Daska has been out of order for the last nine years thereby creating problem for more than 3,200 students.
They are suffering great ordeal in getting drinking water in the college. The plant was set up in 2007 for providing potable water for the students, teachers and other employees.
Water filtration plant went out of order due to technical faults. The college management and the administration have no proper mechanism or funds for the maintenance of the water filtration plant.
However, the college has provided the facility for college students by laying a small-sized pipeline to bring water to the college from a nearby water filtration plant of Daska. However, the facility does not cater for the students. Local social, educational and political circles have expressed grave concerns over this prolonged fault in the water filtration plant. They urged Gujranwala Division Commissioner M Asif and DCO Dr Asif Tufail to ensure early rectification of the plant.