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Express Tribune
25-05-2025
- Health
- Express Tribune
MBBS fee spike irks families
In Pakistan, nearly all parents hope that at least one of their children gets to flaunt the highly revered, 'Dr.' title of a doctor. However, as the medical education sector becomes increasingly reliant on costly private institutions, it appears that the white coat will now be reserved for those born with a golden spoon in their mouth. In 2019, the total tuition fees for the five-year Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree was fixed at Rs5 million. Although private medical colleges implemented this policy for two years, now they are charging Rs10 million to Rs15 million as fees for the same degree. As a result of the increase in fees, students and their parents are facing severe financial difficulties since they also have to bear the additional cost of Rs2 million on books, clothing, transportation and daily expenses during the five-year academic period. Beenish, a pre-medical student, shared her experience of taking admission at a private medical school after she could not qualify for a government college. 'In addition to the first-year fee of Rs2.2 million, I was asked to deposit additional money in the name of donation, for which no receipt was given. If we use the college's transportation, then Rs100,000 is collected annually as travel charges. Similarly, a monthly fee of Rs50,000 is sought for living in the girls' hostel. Our parents are suffering from severe mental stress because of the huge sum of money required for our education,' said Beenish. Ali Murtaza, a second-year medical student at a private medical college confirmed that exorbitant fees were being collected from students at private institutions even though their faculty was incomplete. 'Private medical colleges have a monopoly in the city and are charging arbitrary fees. As a result, medical education has become so expensive that the children of low to middle-income parents cannot afford to become doctors,' exclaimed Murtaza. Muhammad Zia Iqbal, former Dean of Basic Sciences at Dow University and former Professor at the Sindh Medical College, confirmed that private medical education had become a commercial industry in the country since the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) had failed to formulate any uniform policy regarding their fees. "Hence, the annual fee of private colleges has increased by 200 per cent," claimed Iqbal. On the other hand, the PMDC has maintained complete silence on the extraordinary, unannounced and arbitrary increase in tuition fees by private medical and dental colleges. From 2019 to 2021, the annual tuition fee for MBBS was fixed at Rs1 million. However, after the dissolution of the Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC), the Pakistan Medical Council (PMC) divided medical colleges across the country into A, B and C categories, after which these colleges started deciding their own fee. Some medical colleges are charging an additional fee of 10 to 20 per cent every year. An international medical college in Karachi is charging a five-year fee of 90,000 US dollars, hence proving that the PMDC has become practically inactive. This is aggravated by the fact that limited seats are allocated for medical education in government medical and dental colleges. A total of 2,450 seats are allocated for MBBS in government medical colleges in Sindh. The number of government medical colleges across Sindh including Karachi is 12 while the number of government dental colleges is seven and the number of government medical universities is six. The Pakistan Medical and Dental Council has issued a public notice on January 8, 2025, directing private medical and dental colleges to not collect fees for the academic session of 2024-25 until the Medical Education Committee established by the Prime Minister under the chairmanship of the Deputy Prime Minister takes a decision regarding the review of tuition fees.
Business Recorder
24-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Austerity for people, exceptions for state
EDITORIAL: In a country where every budget cycle tightens the noose on the ordinary citizen, the procurement of 179 vehicles — 15 of them fully bulletproof — by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) under the guise of reform is a stark reminder of how austerity in Pakistan has long been a one-way street. The Planning Commission's call for a review of the Rs2.2 billion vehicle expenditure under the FBR's World Bank-funded Revenue Raises Project should not only be heeded, but broadened into a wider inquiry into why austerity only ever applies to the governed, never the governors. The economic rationale of the Revenue Raises Project is hard to dispute on paper. A benefit-cost ratio ranging from 42 to 70, and an internal rate of return from 130 percent to 195 percent, are impressive metrics by any standard. But such numbers risk becoming academic if they come to justify unchecked spending cloaked in reformist language. The Planning Commission is right to question how these 179 vehicles — procured without clear specifications and at an average unit cost of Rs12.5 million — fit into the broader framework of the government's self-declared austerity drive. Even the Finance Division, usually content to toe the fiscal line, has signalled concern. The FBR has defended the procurement, citing the operational demands of varied terrains and the anti-smuggling mandate of its digital enforcement units. But here lies the problem: the state's definition of 'essential' is elastic — rarely subject to the same rigour or sacrifice demanded of the citizenry. Bulletproof vehicles and state-of-the-art tracking systems are evidently easier to justify than trimming allowances or merging redundant bureaucracies. This tone-deaf spending is all the more jarring when set against the backdrop of an economy in distress. Pakistan's tax-to-GDP ratio remains stuck at around 10 percent, far below the Asia-Pacific average. A staggering 64 percent of economic activity remains undocumented. Small businesses incur high compliance costs, while the cash-to-GDP ratio remains abnormally high at 28 percent, compared to India's 18 percent and Bangladesh's 17 percent. The structural tax reforms demanded by the IMF have already been extracted from the public through higher levies, indirect taxes, and repeated rounds of inflationary adjustment. Meanwhile, the state apparatus continues to grow in scale and insulate itself from shared sacrifice. The Planning Commission's observations go beyond procurement excesses. It has rightly flagged the need to rationalise tax procedures, simplify the levy structure, and accelerate digitisation. These are the reforms that can make tax collection more efficient and equitable. The irony, however, is that a project purportedly aimed at achieving precisely these goals now risks becoming a textbook example of bureaucratic overreach and resource misallocation. The FBR's vision is not without merit. Mobile tax facilitation units, ICT upgrades, and harmonisation efforts with provincial tax authorities are all welcome steps. But these goals do not require fleets of high-end vehicles and bulletproof assets as their delivery mechanism. Reform cannot be used as cover for profligacy. Nor should the promise of long-term efficiency gains grant a carte-blanche today. The government's credibility on austerity is already threadbare. Each new commitment to fiscal discipline is followed by exceptions for politically connected departments, elite bureaucracies, or strategic pet projects. Until this pattern is broken — until austerity is practised at the top as stringently as it is enforced at the bottom — public trust in reform efforts will continue to erode. The Planning Commission has done its job in raising a red flag. What remains to be seen is whether anyone in government has the political will to act on it. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
23-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
PM Shehbaz Sharif inaugurates Jinnah Square Murree Road Underpass
Listen to article Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif inaugurated on Friday the newly constructed Jinnah Square Murree Road Underpass, a project completed in 35 days. The underpass, which spans approximately 479 metres and features three traffic lanes, is part of a broader initiative to create a signal-free corridor from Islamabad Airport to Murree, aimed at alleviating traffic congestion and reducing travel time for commuters. During the inauguration ceremony, PM Sharif commended Interior Minister Senator Syed Mohsin Raza Naqvi and his team, including Chairperson Capital Development Authority (CDA) Muhammad Ali Randhawa and IG Islamabad Police Syed Ali Nasir Rizvi, for their efforts in completing the project swiftly. He described the initiative as nationally beneficial, ensuring smooth connectivity to the scenic tourist destination of Murree. 'It has been due to the unity and harmony of the nation and the blessings of Almighty Allah. Moreover, the meritorious history of the nation will be remembered by the enemy forever,' the prime minister said. Apart from the underpass, the project includes a road network and landscaping. PM Sharif noted that the nearly 9-kilometre-long connectivity route would not only benefit the residents of Rawalpindi and Islamabad but also the entire nation through its enhanced connectivity heading towards Murree. Earlier, Interior Minister Naqvi briefed PM Sharif on the project's progress and future plans, including the design work for the Shaheen Chowk Underpass and upcoming tourism projects such as a Safari Park and Chairlift in the Murree region. The event was attended by Federal Ministers Hanif Abbasi, Dr Tariq Fazl Chaudhary, Ministers of State Talal Chaudhary and Talha Burki, and other parliamentarians. Moreover, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also inaugurated the Nawaz Sharif Flyover in Sargodha. Provincial Minister Sohaib Ahmed Bharth informed her that the project had been completed in eight months at a cost of Rs2.2 billion. More than 30,000 vehicles are expected to use the 1.3km-long flyover daily. People travelling to Sargodha from Khushab, Mianwali and Bhakkar will benefit from the project.
Express Tribune
22-05-2025
- Climate
- Express Tribune
CM distributes laptops, scholarships in Sargodha
Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif distributed laptops and scholarships among students at the University of Sargodha on Thursday. She congratulated the students on achieving success in Operation Bunyan-un-Marsus. A contingent of Sargodha Police saluted the students during the ceremony. According to a statement, 2,983 laptops and 2,491 Honhaar scholarships were given to students of Sargodha division, including 2,587 laptops and 1,975 scholarships to students of government universities. In addition, 93 students of medical colleges in the division received laptops and 55 scholarships, while 303 students of colleges will get laptops and 461 Honhaar scholarships. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz also inaugurated the Nawaz Sharif Flyover in Sargodha. Provincial Minister Sohaib Ahmed Bharth informed her that the project had been completed in eight months at a cost of Rs2.2 billion. More than 30,000 vehicles are expected to use the 1.3km-long flyover daily. The residents travelling to Sargodha from Khushab, Mianwali and Bhakkar will benefit from the project. Meanwhile, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz has directed the administration in Multan and Dera Ghazi Khan to remain alert in view of a severe heatwave in the region. She also instructed the rescue agencies to make all possible arrangements to cope with the heatwave in Lahore, Faisalabad and Sargodha, She advised the children, elderly and the sick not to leave their homes unnecessarily. The chief minister appealed to the people to take precautionary measures. She instructed the farmers to provide shade and ample water for livestock. She appealed to the people to keep cool water for birds on the rooftops during the intense heatwave. The chief minister ordered the suspension of open-air activities in all government and private educational institutions and to ensure that the fans are functional in all classrooms. She directed the school administrations to relax the dress code for students and ensure presence of first aid boxes.
Express Tribune
22-05-2025
- Business
- Express Tribune
Defence budget may increase manifold
Listen to article Pakistan may further increase the proposed defence budget for the next fiscal year to deal with the Indian aggression and spend more on indigenous research and development, in a move that may also require the provincial governments to share the additional cost. Official sources told The Express Tribune that due to rapid security-related developments, the authorities concerned have started considering whether the earlier agreed 18% increase in the defence budget for fiscal year 2025-26 will be sufficient. The issue has been discussed at the level of the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Defence and also with the International Monetary Fund, said the sources. While responding to a question whether Pakistan requested the IMF to allow further increase in defence budget and to compensate it downward adjust the agreed primary budget surplus target, Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb replied that "we remain committed to stay the course both in terms of structural reform agenda and meeting all quantitative and structural benchmarks". Pre-May 10, the federal government had decided to give an 18% increase in the defence budget over last year's allocation of Rs2.1 trillion. This has also been agreed between the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. However, the IMF had indicated Rs2.42 trillion for defence spending for the next fiscal year, which was higher by only 12%. The sources said that the IMF did not have an issue with the increase in the defence budget, provided the government has a fiscal room to fund it without compromising the primary budget surplus target of around Rs2.2 trillion or 1.7% of GDP. The discussions are taking place at a time when the IMF's top man for the region, Jihaz Azour, was in Islamabad. Jihad held important meetings on Wednesday, including with the Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and some with other high profile state dignitaries, said the sources. Jihad is also scheduled to meet with the Prime Minister today (Thursday). The sources said in order to meet the heightened security situation, there was a need to increase the defence budget by at least one-fourth. This would require around Rs500 billion jump over this fiscal year, which was necessary to replenish the arsenals. The sources said that the additional money was also needed for the armed forces development programme and clearing some past defence-related liabilities. For this fiscal year, Rs270 billion had been allocated for the armed forces development programme, which may have to be significantly increased in the light of regional developments, said the sources. The additional financial needs to cement the country's defence have to be shouldered by the provinces. In a meeting with the Prime Minister a few days ago, Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik had proposed that the provincial governments should bear at least half of the additional defence cost. The provinces are rich and have huge cash surpluses while the federal government is running in deficit. India attacked Punjab and Sindh provinces and there is a need that also the provinces now should come forward to bear the cost, remarked the government officials. The Finance Ministry was also considering diverting some of the unproductive subsidies towards meeting the nation's additional defence budget needs. During one of recent meetings, the IMF's Mission Chief pointed towards allocating over Rs1 trillion for power sector subsidies despite the fact that electricity prices have come down. But the Power Division was asking for more money, said the sources. The Finance Ministry can also divert some of the unproductive subsidies given for various banking sector schemes towards meeting the defence needs. The coalition partners were battling for more development budget while terming the proposed Rs921 billion worth Public Sector Development Programme insufficient for the next fiscal year. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has already constituted a committee to review the possibility of further increasing the development budget. The government was contemplating increasing the development budget to over Rs1 trillion but the Finance Ministry wanted to restrict it and instead put money for the defence purposes. The FBR remains the weakest link and a reason for the lower than the required allocations for the defence and the development. The FBR has been missing its tax targets by wide margins and it's almost all initiatives have backfired. Some of the IMF-FBR meetings this week did not go well due to the FBR's inability to fulfill its commitments. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday constituted a committee to address the issue of stuck-up refunds of the refineries due to bad taxation policies and to inflate collection. It was decided that the Petroleum Division will consult with the Finance Division and Revenue Division to finalize the proposal regarding adjustment mechanism of sales tax on refinery products, according to the decision. There is also a need to end the unjustified 1% advance income tax on exports in the budget after the normal tax regime has taken effect from this fiscal year. Pakistan on Wednesday blamed India for a deadly attack on a school bus. The Prime Minister's Office stated on Wednesday that in a reprehensible and cowardly act of terrorism, a school bus carrying innocent children was targeted today in Khuzdar, Balochistan by state sponsored proxies (Fitna Al Hindustan) of India which the world has largely come to know as epicenter of instability in the region. Sequel to gross failure to intimidate Pakistan through overt military means, dastardly terrorist incidents are being orchestrated through their proxies at an intensified scale in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, deliberately targeting civilians in a futile attempt to destabilize the Pakistan, according to the Prime Minister's Office. The dastardly incident led to martyrdom of three innocent children and two soldiers along with 53 injured including 39 innocent children of which 8 are critical, according to the government. Given the heightened tensions, the authorities said that the next year's defence budget has to be exceptionally increase one-time to strengthen the capabilities of the army, navy and the air force.
