Following years of federal inaction, the Punjab government is set to revive the long-abandoned Rawalpindi Mother and Child Hospital project under its Annual Development Programme (ADP). The revised plan envisions the completion of the facility as a state-of-the-art Children’s Hospital, with the project’s cost now escalated to Rs9 billion. PHOTO: EXPRESS
RAWALPINDI:
The state-of-the-art “Mother and Child Hospital”, a project initiated during the tenure of former interior minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed and delayed for the past four years, has been renamed the “Children’s Hospital”, with December 31, 2026 fixed as the new completion deadline.
The estimated cost of the project has increased by 50 per cent due to higher prices of building materials, steel and tiles. Alteration work, marble flooring, installation of windows, grills and doors, plumbing and brickwork have resumed in the already completed structure.
Officials said that although these works had earlier been completed, a four-year delay resulted in the theft of steel, wooden fixtures, iron grills, windows and doors, requiring their reinstallation at higher cost.
The three-storey hospital will have 500 beds and 13 operation theatres.
Rawalpindi Commissioner Salman Ghani visited the under-construction hospital on Asghar Mall Road and reviewed different sections, ongoing construction work, the overall progress of the project, construction quality and available facilities.
During the briefing, he was informed that overall progress had reached 25pc, while construction of the main structure had already been completed.
The commissioner said the Children’s Hospital was an important project for the region because no specialised public hospital for children currently exists in Rawalpindi and surrounding areas. Once operational, it will provide modern healthcare facilities to thousands of children under one roof and reduce the need for families to travel to other cities.
He directed the authorities to ensure all basic and modern facilities for patients and attendants, including separate executive washrooms for men and women, spacious parking, comfortable waiting areas, clean drinking water, effective drainage, proper sanitation, modern lifts, ramps, emergency access, clear signage, wheelchair facilities, backup power, fire safety arrangements and foolproof security.
He further directed that modern medical equipment, specialised children’s wards, emergency services, intensive care units, operation theatres, laboratories, pharmacies and other medical departments be completed on time so that the hospital could provide full medical services immediately after becoming operational. He also ordered continuous monitoring of every phase of the project, strict adherence to construction standards and immediate removal of all obstacles.
