Karachi, March 15; an early Cancer Detection Centre, the second to be built by the Medical Aid Foundation was inaugurated in the presence of the city elite at a Karachi Abadi in Mahmoodabad on Thursday.
Mr S.M. Munir, Senior Vice-President, Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industries, was the chief guest at the gathering which was president over by Sindh Minister for Health Irfanullah Marwat. Other Speakers included cancer specialist, Dr S.H. Zaidi Dr Saira S. Khan (President), Mrs Qudsia Akbar (Vice-President), Col. Mohammad Nasim Jan (Secretary General) and Mrs Hanifa O.V Jooma Chairperson fundraising Committee.
Mr Munir, who praised the services of MAF for setting up the centre in this locality, emphasized that it was important to check cancer in its early stages before the disease became incurable. He announced a donation of Rs 100.000 for the Centre.
The chief guest mentioned that the Chiniot Anjuman-e-Islami, which he headed, was engaged in a number of social welfare projects. These included a school for 800 children near Safari park, a maternity home in Nazimabad,, a 200 bed hospital in Korangi and a hospital to be built in Gulshan-e-Iqbal, together with a Diabetic Centre in Alhamra Hall with dialysis machines. These institutions charged nominally or gave free service to the poor, he added.
Mr Marwat referred to Mahmoodabad as a “very poor area” deprived of civic amenities and absence of ownership raights. According to him, the Government planned to set up a college for 500 students on March 25, an 80 bed hospital in Chanesargoth on March 27 and a 50 bed hospital in Manzoor Colony shortly after. He said that about Rs. 8.2 million were to be spent on solving the water problem in the next 10-12 days in Mahmoodabad.
The Minister announced a personal donation of Rs. 25,000 to the MAF. He urged philanthropists to assist the Government in good causes, observing that the trend for assisting humanitarian projects appeared to be dealing.
Dr S.H. Zaidi told the gathering that cancer was not a contagious disease as was frequently asked. According to him, early detection was necessary because of incurability of advanced stage cancer. He felt that the utility of the PAF Centre would grow in proportion to its dissemination of information on cancer among the public.
Dr. Saira khan said that MAF planned to provide door-to-door information about cancer in the areas where it had set up its detection centers. It further planned to set up a home for those suffering from terminal cancer, for which the organization had already received 3,000 sq. yards of land. She announced the names of a number of philanthropic groups and individuals who had donated to the Mahmoodabad Centre.
The MAF President said that the group was dedicating the Mahmoodabad Centre to the memory of Rehana Dhanani, a social worker who had died of cancer recently.
Col. Mohammad Nasim Jan, the Secretary General of MAF said that the organization planned to set up many more centres of this kind in various parts of the city.
He also urged precautionary measures against cancer such as avoiding talking Cigarette, Paan and Chalia.
Mrs Qudsia Akbar, Vice-President and Mrs Hanifa O.V Jooma Chairperson of the Fundraising Committee also spoke on the recession. |
