Sindh Gov to replace PMC with a new Medical Commision

Sindh's government has agreed to set up the Sindh Medical Commission (SMC) to oversee admissions to medical and dental schools throughout the state.

The news comes after the Pakistan Medical Commission (PMC) turned down the Sindh government's plea to lower the passing requirements for the Medical and Dental Colleges Admission Test (MDCAT) for Sindh students.

The Sindh health department, according to sources, has drafted a proposed bill in this regard, which proposes, among other things, lowering the MDCAT merit to 50% from 65 percent.

According to reports, a summary in this regard has been sent to the Chief Minister for approval by the provincial cabinet. Admissions to Sindh's medical and dentistry colleges are likely to begin next month after the permission.

Dr. Azra Pechuho, Sindh's health minister, warned last month that they would form their own medical commission to bypass the PMC, which is controlled by the federal government.

"We are drafting a bill to establish the Sindh Medical and Dental Council (SMDC), which would be tabled in the provincial parliament shortly." We wanted our provincial medical and dental council to be a chapter of the federal council, but now that the PMC has been established, we have no choice but to form our own council to govern medical and dental education in Sindh," she told the media on October 20.

The Sindh government and the federal government have been at odds over the PMC and MDCAT testing systems, which the former claims "discriminatory toward students from smaller provinces due to variations in curricula and examination methods."