Daily Times

ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Thursday took suo moto notice of reported closing down of Bone Marrow Transplant Centre (BMTC) at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS), Islamabad.

The CJP sought a report from Secretary Ministry of Capital Administration and Development Division (CADD) within three days. The notice was taken on the application by parents of the children getting treatment of bone marrow at the centre. They stated that bone marrow transplant was the only cure available to children with thalassaemia major and around 500 children were on the waiting list for transplants.

The application further stated that doctors, nurses and other staff at the centre had not been paid their salaries since July 2017 and they had been told that their contracts would not be extended owing to administrative issues.

It said the transplant at a private hospital costs around Rs 3 million, whereas it costs Rs 1 million at the PIMS, of which Rs 0. 6 million are donated by Pakistan Bait-ul-Mal.

The application also asserted that there was apprehension of closure of the Cardiac Centre, while the liver transplant unit at PIMS had already been closed and the same was apparently for the benefit of private hospitals that were charging more than the average citizen could afford.

Published in Daily Times, March 30^th 2018.