Muzaffarabad: (Parliament Times)Â AJK government and Novartis, a global healthcare company to provide free of cost medicines to the patients suffering from blood cancer. This was disclosed by Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan after attending an agreement signing ceremony here on Wednesday. The ceremony was attended by AJK Health Minister for Youth and Culture, Chaudhry Muhammad Saeed, Minister for Industries and Social Welfare, Muthrama Noreen Arif, Minister for Revenue, Sardar Farooq Sikandar, Minister for Rehabilitation Nasir Hussain Dar, Deputy Speaker AJK Legislative Assembly, Sardar Faooq Tahir, Minister Dr Najeeb Naqi, Secretary Health, Major General Khalid Hussain, Country Head of Vovartis Company, Shafiq Ahmed and others top officials of AJK Health Department. Under the agreement ninty percent cost of the medicines will be borne by Novartis while rest of the ten percent will be provided the AJK government for five years.
Addressing the ceremony Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider Khan said his government was striving hard to provide the best possible health care facilities to the people of Azad Kashmir within its limited resources. He said government is starting emergency health services in all district headquarters hospital of the state and for this purpose required posts has been approved with funds for the medicines to provide round the clock emergency services in the hospitals. He said a person suffering from Leukemia or blood cancer needs 4.1 million annually for purchase medicines. This enormous cost of medicines is beyond purchasing power of a common man. He said that cancer is diseases that brought disaster not only for the patients but also for the families of the patients too. Describing serving of ailing humanity as one of the best virtue, Raja Farooq Haider Khan said only those remain alive in the hearts and minds of people who selflessly serve the mankind. He said his government provided Rs 300 million from Zakat Profit Fund to the cancer patients. Earlier the same funds were utilized on the treatment of ministers and assembly members and now they voluntarily withdraw from this privilege. He said doctors of Azad Jammu and Kashmir were doing their noble job and urged them to serve the people with more dedication and care. He expressed his profound gratitude to the Novartis Health Care Company and Health Department of AJK for working day and night to materialize this marvelous plan to provide cost free medicines to the patients of blood cancer.
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