Daily Times

Caretaker Chief Minister Punjab, Mohsin Naqvi, visited Services Hospital today for three hours. During the visit, he observed issues such as bad beds in the wards, unpleasant odours, non-functional air conditioning, poor patient conditions, inadequate hygiene, substandard operation theaters, and a lack of medical facilities. Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed strong dissatisfaction after witnessing the hospital’s conditions.

Mohsin Naqvi reprimanded the Director of Finance for not paying the AC maintenance contractor for seven months and promptly ordered the removal of the said individual from his position. He also cancelled the parking contract due to complaints of overcharging and directed the Lahore Parking Company to take over parking management in Services Hospital.

Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi instructed the replacement of old beds and mattresses, with an immediate directive for early payment to the AC contractor. He stressed the urgent need to replace non-functional and damaged AC units in the wards. Additionally, CM announced the hospital’s upgrading and called for a master plan, tasking the Infrastructure Development Authority Punjab to prepare one.

During the visit, Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi inspected the dialysis unit, population welfare centre, police station, parking lot, and medicine store. These areas faced complaints regarding the lack of medical facilities, poor sanitation, and AC shutdown. He directed the hospital administration to ensure the provision of quality treatment to patients.

Mohsin Naqvi also instructed the hospital to arrange a kidney transplant for young Talha, who is currently receiving treatment in the dialysis unit. He asked to prepare a report on Talha’s treatment progress on daily basis. Expressing his determination to improve the hospital’s conditions, Mohsin Naqvi promised to revisit the hospital next week.

He stressed the importance of maintaining a constant supply of medicines in the store and directed proper cooling for medicines and injections. Additionally, Mohsin Naqvi visited the storeroom and inspected the new emergency area’s construction, ordering its functional completion within seven days. He emphasized continuous work, even during holidays, to expedite the new emergency’s early completion with a focus on ensuring quality work.

Furthermore, Mohsin Naqvi directed the completion of the sewerage and drainage system in the medical emergency. He expressed deep regret over the Services Hospital’s condition, situated in the center of Lahore, and referred to it as the worst he has seen among dozens of hospitals he has visited.

He vowed to dedicate all possible time and effort to improving Services Hospital and making it the best hospital. Mohsin Naqvi also highlighted the dissatisfaction of the Director of Finance regarding AC maintenance payments, which have been pending for seven months despite the arrival of summer. Provincial Minister Specialized Healthcare and Medical Education Dr Javed Akram, Secretary of Health, MS Services Hospital Dr Munir Malik, Deputy Commissioner, and other relevant officials were also present there during his visit.

A high-level meeting was held in the Chief Minister’s Office under the chairmanship of Caretaker Chief Minister Punjab Mohsin Naqvi, in which sustainable measures for higher production of cash crops and promotion of agriculture were reviewed. In the meeting, proposals regarding high-quality seeds and standard agricultural drugs were considered to achieve higher production of crops and it was agreed to allocate special zones for agriculture in Special Economic Zones (SEZs). Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi called for a workable plan to increase the production of gram and pulses in Punjab and said that valuable foreign exchange can be saved every year by increasing the production of pulses. Promotion of agricultural exports with food self-sufficiency is our common mission. Facilitation is being created for investment in agriculture sector and one window facility will be provided to the investors. Mohsin Naqvi said that corporates are working with the private sector to promote farming. Large-scale reforms are being introduced for the prosperity of farmers and development of agriculture. If farmer will develop then Pakistan will develop. During the meeting, the representatives of Pesticides and Seed companies said that the credit for the record increase in the area under cotton cultivation in Punjab goes to Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi and his team. Actionable measures are indispensable for the development of value added agriculture industries. Implementation of water management plan for crops should be ensured and capacity building of farmers should be organized to ensure proportionate use of fertilizers. Representatives of pesticides and seed companies presented various suggestions. Chief Minister Mohsin Naqvi assured the implementation of feasible suggestions presented by the representatives of pesticides and seed companies. The meeting was attended by Provincial Ministers SM Tanveer and Ibrahim Hassan Murad, Chief Secretary, Chairman Planning and Development Board, Secretaries of Agriculture, Finance, and Industry, as well as other concerned authorities.

Representatives from both local and multinational companies, including officials from APTMA such as Fawad Ahmed Mukhtar, Ahsan Zafar, Zaheer Mehdi, Owais Mushtaq Paracha, Asif Majeed, Nader Nawaz Jafar, Shahzad Ali Malik, Jawad Saleem Qureshi, Saad Akbar Khan, Zeeshan Haseeb Baig, Talal Hakeem, Ahmed Ali, Haseeb Aslam, Atif Kamal, Mansoor Haider Javed, Imran Nasrullah, Hamir Ejaz, Syed Yawar Ali, and Amir Altaf Qureshi, participated in the meeting.