Minister asks health officials to pull up socks

PESHAWAR: During his first interaction with officials of the Health Department as minister for health, Shahram Khan Tarakai on Thursday warned that he would hold the senior officials responsible and take action against them if the lower staff was found guilty in irregularities or corruption.

Upon his return from umrah, he reached his office and assumed the charge of his new assignment as provincial health minister. Previously, he was holding the portfolio of minister for local government and initiated reforms there. Officials of Health Department said Shahram Tarakai called a joint meeting of all the senior management of his department and explained to them their agenda and mission of providing the best possible healthcare to the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Shahram Tarakai was the health minister during the previous government of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in KP and introduced reforms in the health sector.

He and the PTI government faced tough resistance from the doctors and other health workers who opposed the new health policy of the government and started agitations and strikes by suspending services in the hospitals. The government finally succeeded in implementing its much-trumpeted health reforms passed from KP Assembly in the form of two Acts - Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Medical Teaching Institution Reforms Act 2015 (MTI Act) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Health Care Commission 2015 (KPHCC).

In his introductory meeting, Shahram Tarakai informed the staff of Health Department about his previous tenure as health minister and said he neither sought any undue favour from officials of his department nor given them any illegal orders in four years.

The health minister said he would follow the same policy and assured them of his full cooperation to those serving with honesty and dedication. He said he had no personal interests and the only aim was to restore the trust of the people on public sector hospitals by improving services in the state-run institutions.

Sources close to the health minister told The News that Shahram Tarakai was shocked when noticed some of the people he had removed from important positions on corrupt practices were sitting in the meeting with him.

“The minister was further shocked and upset when he asked about some important programmes he had initiated in health such as the Health Care Commission, Health Foundation, etc. He was told that KPHCC doesn’t exist and is taken over by the corrupt inspectors of previous Health Regulatory Authority,” said an official of Health Department privy to the meeting.

Pleading anonymity, he said Shahram Tarakai was seen very upset after the meeting and told some officials that their four years of hard work had been wasted. He, however, made it clear that people wanted to work with him would have to change their attitude or there would be no place for them in the Health Department.

PDWP approves 32 projects

The Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) on Thursday approved 32 projects worth Rs20264.806 million. A handout said the PDWP meeting was held under the chairmanship of Shakeel Qadir Khan, the Additional Chief Secretary Planning and Development Department, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

The meeting was attended by members of PDWP and officials of the departments concerned. The forum considered 37 projects about different sectors, including multi-sectoral development, Elementary and Secondary Education, Sports and Tourism, Roads and Bridges, Drinking Water Supply and Sanitation, Urban Development, Social Welfare, Information, labour, & Relief and Rehabilitation sectors for the uplift of the province.

The forum approved 32 projects with an estimated cost of Rs20264.806 million. Five projects were deferred and were returned to their respective departments for rectification. The approved project of Multi-Sectoral Development sector were: Construction/reconstruction of Existing Building Projects Japanese Grant for FATA I/C GPS Rustam Killay; least developed districts uplift programme (Kolai Palas, Battagram, Tank, Kohistan Upper, Shangla, Buner, Chitral (Upper & Lower) and Hangu; Malakand Area Development Programme; Peshawar Uplift Programme (Phase-II).

The approved project of Elementary and Secondary Education sector are: Upgradation of educational institutions to high school and higher secondary schools in Kurram district; upgradation of 6 middle schools to high status andupgradation of 3 primary schools to middle status in South Waziristan district; establishment of 19 primary level education facilities in South Waziristan.