Punjab’s medical colleges to get Students’ Councils

2026-02-18 - 14:13

The University of Health Sciences (UHS) on Wednesday approved the formation of Students’ Councils and hostel representative committees to ensure the timely resolution of student issues and structured academic engagement. The 95th meeting of the Syndicate, chaired by UHS Vice Chancellor Prof Ahsan Waheed Rathore, agreed that the Students’ Councils will remain strictly non-political and advisory, limited to academic, co-curricular and welfare matters. Each council will comprise at least 20 students representing all classes, disciplines and both genders, with tenure of one academic year. A senior faculty member will serve as president, and no meeting will be valid without that oversight. The bodies will present documented academic concerns to the administration and coordinate student welfare initiatives. Separate hostel committees for male and female residents were also approved to monitor cleanliness, mess arrangements, security and complaint handling under chief wardens. These committees will report to wardens, while the Students’ Council will report through the Staff President to a supervisory committee and ultimately to the Vice Chancellor. The Syndicate also endorsed a newly developed digital Examiners’ Appointment and Bills Management System designed by the university’s examinations department. The system replaces manual paperwork with centralised electronic processing, enabling real-time tracking of examiner appointments, assignments and payments, reducing delays, minimising errors and strengthening financial oversight. Members further approved the establishment of the Prof Ahsan Waheed Rathore Centre for Faculty Excellence, dedicated to academic leadership, research growth and faculty development. The centre recognises institutional reforms introduced during the current VC’s tenure, including competency-based curricula, examination reforms, academic councils in basic and clinical sciences, emergency life-saving skills training and development of the university’s Jinnah Campus. Among other decisions, the Syndicate approved certificate courses of three and six months in Family Medicine Practice and Emergency Care aimed at strengthening primary healthcare capacity for more than 120,000 family physicians nationwide. Members were further briefed on Academic Council recommendations, such as curriculum revision of the BS Human Nutrition and Dietetics programme aligned with international guidelines, and introduction of a non-credit “Zero Semester” for certain MPhil entrants. Affiliation matters discussed included recommendations to enhance MBBS intake at Al-Aleem Medical College, Lahore, to 150 seats and to grant affiliation to Queens Medical College, Kasur, for 100 seats, following inspections conducted under relevant statutory provisions. Suicide of MBBS Student: FJMU suspends classes, postpones exams