LAHORE: Fatima Jinnah Medical University (FJMU) has received a major blow to its status, as Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) categorically denied its registration, citing non-fulfillment of legal requirements.
The decision has sent a shockwave among the medics community and put the future of university at stake. Despite the lapse of one year, the Specialised Healthcare and Medical Education Department has failed to include the name of FJMU in the list of PMDC in its third schedule for recognising medical universities. The issue has raised several questions marks over the performance of the provincial government, confirming its ignorance towards medical education.
A well-placed source in SHC&ME Department, on the condition of anonymity, said that FJMU has been facing many challenges from the very beginning. Firstly, he said, Punjab Assembly had blatantly ignored and passed the FJMU Bill, 2015, restricting the vice chancellor’s age limit to 61 years, while the government itself had fixed 65 years age limit for VCs of all public sectors universities of the province in 2012.
After realising various shortcomings in the bill, he added, the government had enhanced the age limit for the top position from 61 to 65 years, after amending FJMU Bill. Secondly, he said, the fate of university was still hanging in the air as FJMU was yet to be recognised as a registered medical university by PMDC even after a lapse of one year. The name of FJMU was in the list of PMDC’s third schedule of recognised medical universities. FJMC was one of the premier medical institutions of the country, which was upgraded on the pattern of King Edward Medical University (KEMU) to the status of an independent degree awarding university by the Punjab government after the approval of FJMU Bill, 2015.
Punjab government had also attached hospitals, including Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Government Shahdara Hospital, Government Mazong Hospial and DHQ Sheikpura, to the varsity. The SHC&ME Department had notified the FJMU as third medical varsity of the provincial capital on July 1, 2015, after getting approval by the chancellor (Punjab governor) and the chief minister. It had also appointed FJMC Principal Prof Dr Sardar Fakhar Imam as the acting vice chancellor.
FJMU VC Prof Dr Sardar Fakhar Imam has written a letter to PMDC’s council, asking to declare FJMU as a recognised medical university after conducting its inspection, so that postgraduate courses could be started.
The PMDC categorically turned down this request, declaring that FJMU does not meet the required criteria. The Punjab government has established University of Health Sciences (UHS), which had Gujranwala Medical College as its constituent college. Surprisingly, KEMU was also upgraded to a degree awarding university despite not having any constituent college, but was still recognised by PMDC.
FJMU Prof Dr Sardar Fakhar Imam remained unavailable to respond despite several attempts.