390 receive MBBS, BDS degrees: KMDC seats doubled

KARACHI, As many as 390 graduates of medicine and dentistry programmes belonging to five batches of the Karachi Medical and Dental College (KMDC) were conferred University of Karachi degrees at a convocation held on Tuesday.

The Sindh governor and KU chancellor, Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan, who was chief guest of the ceremony, gave away medals to outstanding graduates. He also declared to double the existing number of admissions in MBBS and BDS programmes at the KMDC.

The convocation in question was the second in the history of the KMDC established in 1991 by the defunct KMC. The college is affiliated with the KU since its inception and is associated with the Abbasi Shaheed Hospital for clinical side training of its students.

Dr Ibad congratulated the graduating students and their parents on the day of convocation and said that now it was the turn of the graduates to work for the alleviation of the sufferings of the ailing humanity of the country.

He praised the dedication of teachers and the city government’s commitment to the cause of medical education and assured the college and hospital administrations that he would extend all possible support in improving the faculties and related affairs and quality of education.

Dr Ibad also announced to increase the number of MBBS and BDS seats from 50 to 100 and 25 to 50, respectively. Besides, he committed to give a grant of Rs10 million to the KMDC and Rs50,000, Rs30,000 and Rs20,000 as cash prizes to each of the first, second and third position holders of the college who were also awarded medals at the convocation.

In his address of welcome, the recently appointed principal, Prof Dr S.M. Abbas Hussain, said that the KMDC was the first public sector medical college run by a city government, while Abbasi Shaheed Hospital, which was the third biggest hospital of Karachi was its teaching hospital. The college could be considered as a trend setter in many ways as it was the first college which started admitting students to its two programmes from the very beginning through entry tests which had been conducted by external testing bodies of repute, he added.

He said that the quality of education given at the college could be gauged with the fact that the top three positions in BDS and MBBS annual exams were secured by the KMDC students repeatedly. The outgoing graduates of five batches have achieved over 150 distinctions in basic and clinical subjects of the MBBS and BDS, he informed.

Talking of the uplift works at the college, he said that recently some of the ongoing civil works pertaining to halls, gymnasium, lecture-halls, and seminar- halls had been completed and the college was now looking for funds for furnishing the facilities with furniture and other related accessories and machines.

We also need fund for maintenance and appointment of faculty on emergent basis to ensure further improvement in education and get the college ready for any enhanced intake of students, he remarked. He also urged the city government to provide new buses for students.

He said that keeping in view the hardship of women students of Karachi admitted to Nawabshah College, the MQM leadership had decided to establish a college exclusively for women, which was later realized as a co-education college through an autonomous body under the supervision of the local government.

City Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal, who is also the sitting chairman of the KMDC’s governing body, said that his government wanted to carry out more uplift works to make it one of the best medical colleges of the country.

He said that city government was committed to raise the status of the college to university level and the problems as mentioned in the principal’s report would be addressed accordingly. He said that the KMDC students would get new buses shortly.

The KU vice-chancellor, Dr Pirzada Qasim, conferred the MBBS and BDS degrees on graduates of classes of 2001 to 2005.

The recipients of best graduate award and gold, silver and bronze medals for securing first, second and third positions respectively in the college are as follows:

MBBS programme;

1st positions- Naveen Naz Syed, Asma Iqbal, Mufazzal Shabbir Rawala, Darakshan Sohail and Mohammad Hanif.

2nd positions- Saira Bano, Erum Abdul Qadir, Farah Raza, Aisha Aurangzeb and Naureen Jessani.

3rd positions- Batool M. Sharif, Saira, Nadia Naz Anis, Husna Ali and Rabia Javed.

BDS programme;

1st positions- Muneeza Khan, Zohair Mazhar Qureshi, Robia Ghafoor, Marium Zaheer and Fahad Umer.

2nd positions- Gul-i-Erum, Tanveer Fatima, Saman Hakeem, Sana Erum and Omair Majeed.

3rd positions- Faisal Aziz, Uzma Patel, Syeda Saba Hyder, Aiman Abbasi and Benish Sartaj.