Day: July 14, 2026

Karachi: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Monday directed the Labour Department to ensure strict accountability, uninterrupted treatment, and long-term rehabilitation of children affected by the HIV outbreak at KulsumBai Valika Hospital, declaring that negligence in healthcare delivery would not be tolerated under any circumstances.

Presiding over a high-level meeting at the CM House to review the HIV cases detected at the Sindh Employees’ Social Security Institution (SESSI)-run KulsumBai Valika Hospital, the chief minister was informed that 78 children have so far been identified as HIV-positive, while disciplinary proceedings have been initiated against dozens of officials and healthcare workers following multiple inquiries into the outbreak.

The meeting was attended by Labour Minister Saeed Ghani, Chief Secretary Sindh Asif Hyder Shah, Secretary to Chief Minister Asif Jameel, Secretary Labour Sajid Jamal Abro, Secretary Health Tahir Sangi, Commissioner SESSI and other senior officials.

The chief minister was briefed that the matter first surfaced after six HIV-positive cases were reported on October 23, 2025. Subsequently, the Labour and Human Resources Department ordered an inquiry, and SESSI constituted a committee headed by its Medical Advisor to investigate the matter.

The inquiry committee, constituted by Labour Minister Saeed Ghani, inspected the hospital, particularly the Paediatrics Department and laboratory facilities, and submitted its report on November 6, 2025. The report identified 16 HIV-positive children, all linked to the Paediatrics Department, and highlighted serious administrative, procedural and infection-control failures.

Saeed Ghani informed the meeting that the inquiry uncovered the absence of standard operating procedures, inadequate supervision of sterilization practices, improper biomedical waste disposal, shortage of biohazard containers, weak inventory controls, insufficient supply of disposable medical items, poor documentation, inadequate HIV testing facilities, and failure to conduct structured follow-up of HIV-positive patients and their families.

The committee also noted instances where single-use medical equipment, including syringes, may have been improperly handled, while healthcare staff were not consistently adhering to infection-prevention protocols and personal protective equipment requirements.

The chief minister was further informed that concerns over the outbreak intensified after complaints were received from affected families and the SITE Association of Trade and Industry, which alleged serious lapses in infection-control practices at the hospital.

Saeed Ghani told the CM, following the inquiry, SESSI initiated a series of corrective measures, including the establishment of an Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) Centre at KulsumBai Valika Hospital. The ART Centre was established on November 15, 2025 and became fully operational on November 24, 2025, after specialized training was conducted by the Communicable Disease Control (CDC) programme of the Sindh Health Department.

The meeting was told that HIV prevention protocols and standard operating procedures were subsequently developed and circulated to all SESSI healthcare facilities across Sindh. Screening of more than 300 doctors and paramedical staff was also conducted, resulting in the identification of two HIV-positive employees, whose family members later tested negative.

Labour Minister briefed the chief minister that disciplinary proceedings were initiated against the then Medical Superintendent and nine other officers and officials in December 2025. Following unsatisfactory responses to show-cause notices, further action was taken in February 2026.

The meeting was informed that the Provincial Ombudsman (Mohtasib) Sindh took suo motu notice of the matter and issued several directives, including the transfer of the then Medical Superintendent, establishment of a dedicated isolation ward, a comprehensive inquiry, a third-party audit of hospital operations, and provision of the best available treatment to all affected children at government expense.

In compliance with these directions, an isolation ward for HIV-positive children was established, routine HIV screening was initiated for all OPD and admitted patients, and a special audit was ordered to examine procurement, inventory management and budget utilization.

The chief minister was informed that a second comprehensive inquiry committee, headed by Chief Medical Officer Dr Naila Zaheer, submitted its report on June 19, 2026. The committee fixed responsibility on a number of officers and officials for administrative, supervisory and operational lapses and recommended major and minor penalties.

As a result, 37 officers and officials, including former and serving administrators, doctors, nurses, laboratory personnel and support staff, have been suspended. Show-cause notices were issued to all of them on July 3, 2026, with directions to submit their replies within 14 days.

The meeting was also informed that a constitutional petition concerning the matter is currently pending before the Sindh High Court, while comments have been sought from the authorities.

Saeed Ghani told the chief minister that renowned pediatric infectious disease specialist Prof Dr Fatima Mir of Aga Khan University Hospital has been engaged to provide specialized consultation and treatment for HIV-positive children suffering from associated infections. Families of affected children are also being contacted and linked with treatment centers to ensure continuity of care.

The CM said that he has created a Rs 2 billion Endowment Fund to support the treatment, welfare, rehabilitation and long-term care of HIV-positive children and their families.

Speaking on the occasion, CM Shah expressed deep concern over the findings of the inquiries and emphasised that the government would pursue complete accountability wherever negligence or misconduct was established.

‘The lives of children are sacred. Any lapse in medical protocols that endangers patients is unacceptable and will be dealt with strictly in accordance with the law,’ the chief minister said.

CM Shah directed the Labour Department, Health Department and SESSI administration to ensure that all affected children receive uninterrupted treatment, medicines, diagnostic services and follow-up care free of cost. Every child must receive the best available treatment, counselling and rehabilitation support without financial burden,’ he said.

The chief minister also ordered a province-wide review of infection-control practices in all SESSI healthcare facilities and directed that strict compliance with sterilization, waste management and patient-safety protocols be ensured. ‘This incident must serve as a turning point for strengthening patient safety standards across our healthcare system. Preventive mechanisms, monitoring systems and accountability frameworks must be institutionalized to ensure such an incident never occurs again,’ he directed.

Murad Shah further instructed authorities to complete departmental proceedings against responsible officials on merit and without delay, finalize the third-party audit, strengthen surveillance mechanisms, and submit periodic progress reports on treatment, rehabilitation and institutional reforms.

Karachi: Sindh Minister for Local Government, Syed Nasir Hussain Shah on Monday chaired a high-level review meeting via Zoom to assess the progress of ongoing and proposed development projects across the province, directing officials to remove all administrative and technical hurdles to ensure their timely completion.

The meeting was attended by Additional Chief Secretary Local Government Dr. Waseem Shamshad, Special Secretary (Technical) Azhar Hussain Shah, Director Mega Projects Abdul Ghani Shaikh, FWO Brigadier, Adnan and other senior officials.

Officials gave a detailed briefing on approved and proposed development schemes, administrative matters and challenges affecting project implementation. Several key decisions were taken to expedite the execution of projects and improve the delivery of public services.

The minister said the M-9 Abul Hasan Isphahani Road Bridge and the Hawksbay Y Junction Scheme had already been approved, stressing that no further delays in their execution would be tolerated. He directed the authorities to immediately complete all formalities for development schemes that are free from technical or legal impediments so that construction work could begin without delay.

Nasir Shah also instructed officials to coordinate with the Planning and Development (PandD) Department for the early approval of the PC-I for the Malir Halt Underpass and Jinnah Avenue Road, which are part of the M-9 project, and complete all related requirements at the earliest.

The meeting also reviewed progress on the Defence Underpass project. The minister directed the relevant authorities to resolve utility-related issues on a priority basis and immediately commence construction work.

Emphasising that adequate funds had already been allocated for all major development projects, the minister instructed officials to eliminate all administrative and technical bottlenecks to ensure their swift implementation.

He reiterated the Sindh government’s commitment to completing major infrastructure projects within the stipulated timeframe to improve urban infrastructure, ease traffic congestion and provide better commuting facilities to the public.

The minister also directed the concerned officers to maintain continuous monitoring of the projects to ensure that citizens benefit from the development initiatives as early as possible.

Karachi: Karachi Port Trust is handling one of the world’s largest container vessels MSC Erica, reaffirming its capability to handle ultra-large container ships.

The 398.5 mln long mega vessel MSC Erica arrived at South Asia Pakistan Terminals Limited (SAPTL) Karachi Port on 12 July 2026 and more than 3,000 containers are expected to be handled during the vessel’s call, according to a statement issued here.

MSC Erica has an overall length (LOA) of 398.5 meters, Beam of 59 meters, with a carrying capacity of 20,000 TEUs, Gross Tonnage (GT) of 194,308 MT and a Draught of 12.0 meters, it described, adding that it will sail onward to Dalian, China after completing cargo operations at Karachi Port.

The Master of MSC Erica commended the Karachi Port Pilots for their outstanding professionalism, safe ship handling, and warm hospitality, describing Karachi Port as one of the best ports in the region.

Karachi: Commissioner Karachi Syed Hassan Naqvi chaired a meeting of the Deputy Commissioners to review the campaigns being carried out for price control removal of road side encroachments and anti-polio drive on Sunday.

The meeting discussed in details the measures to remove encroachments, curb profiteering, prevent the sale of unsafe gas cylinders, and other public welfare initiatives.

Assistant Commissioner Headquarters Iqra Jannat presented a review of the anti-polio campaign, actions against profiteering, and other improvement measures.

Assistant Commissioner Revenue Sajjad Abro briefed the meeting on ongoing efforts to eliminate encroachments and future planning while Assistant Commissioner General Waqas Abbasi presented details of the actions taken by the Karachi administration to address complaints received from citizens.

All Assistant Commissioners participated in the meeting via video link and briefed the Commissioner on the performance of their respective subdivisions.

The meeting also reviewed measures to remove roadside encroachments and prevent the sale of unsafe gas cylinders. It was decided to further strengthen these efforts.

Commissioner directed deputy Commissioners to intensify efforts to enforce official prices of essential commodities and eliminate roadside encroachments, ensuring improved traffic flow and the availability of food items to citizens at fixed prices.

The meeting was informed that 94% of the target for the vaccination of 2.5 million children during the anti-polio campaign conducted from July 6 to July 12 had been achieved.

The meeting was further informed that, during the same period, action was taken against 362 profiteers as part of the ongoing price control campaign. Fines totaling Rs. 2,617,500 were imposed. Overall, Assistant Commissioners checked prices at 2,111 locations. As part of the crackdown, 20 shops were sealed.

Karachi: A man was killed in a firing incident near Karachi’s Teen Talwar area on Monday, according to Rescue sources.

Initial reports said the victim had just withdrawn a large amount of cash from a nearby bank when armed robbers started firing, TV channels reported.

In response bank security guards also opened fire and in exchange of fire the man sustained bullet shots and died on the spot.

Rescue team reached the spot and shifted the body to a hospital. Police have launched a search operation to trace and arrest the suspects, who managed to flee from the scene after the incident.

Karachi: Karachi Police, intensifying its anti-crime campaign on the directives of Additional Inspector General of Police Karachi, Azad Khan, conducted a series of successful operations across the city during the past week, arresting more than 862 suspects and recovering narcotics, illegal weapons and stolen vehicles.

According to a police spokesperson on Monday, district police engaged in 27 encounters with armed robbers during anti-crime operations. Three suspects were killed in exchanges of fire, while 33 alleged robbers were injured and arrested. Overall, 53 suspects were apprehended in the encounters.

Police recovered 39 illegal weapons of various types, two vehicles and 18 motorcycles from the arrested suspects.

The spokesperson said the police arrested more than 862 suspects in the East, West and South Zones of Karachi during the week as part of the ongoing crackdown against criminal elements.

During the anti-narcotics campaign and police encounters, law enforcers also seized 24.092 kilograms of hashish, 4.516 kilograms of crystal meth (ice) and heroin worth millions of rupees from different parts of the city.

Police further recovered more than 111 illegal weapons of various types along with ammunition, allegedly used by suspects in robberies and other criminal activities.

In separate operations carried out in different areas, Karachi Police also recovered 35 snatched and stolen motorcycles and two stolen vehicles, the spokesperson added.