Sindh govt yet to announce date for MDCAT in province

Due to the non-serious attitude of and a lack of communication between the Sindh government’s health and universities & boards departments, and the IBA Sukkur, neither has the MDCAT been scheduled in the province nor has it been decided who would conduct it in Karachi, after the IBA Karachi refused to do so.

The Sindh High Court had ordered the provincial government on October 26 to again conduct the test in four weeks due to the irregularities in the MDCAT, with the IBA Karachi instructed to hold it for the city’s candidates and the IBA Sukkur for other candidates.

However, despite the refusal of the IBA Karachi to hold the test, the health department has not taken the matter seriously, with only a formal meeting having been held so far, in which the IBA Karachi expressed its inability to hold the test, following which the meeting ended.

Now the health department is left with less than three weeks to conduct the test of 38,041 candidates. A decision is yet to be taken regarding the test in Karachi, because if the responsibility of conducting it is also being given to the IBA Sukkur, the health department has not yet issued any written orders.

In the last test 12,572 candidates had appeared for it in Karachi. Sources told The News that Health Secretary Rehan Baloch has neither given any written orders to the IBA Sukkur to hold the MDCAT nor assured to provide resources and funds, while the date for the test has not been decided as well.

Moreover, the IBA Sukkur does not have a question bank for intermediate pre-medical level. The News tried to contact the health secretary many times but he remained unreachable.