Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Nov 20: In order to meet the demand for trained human resource for upcoming health infrastructure in Jammu Division, Chief Minister, Mufti Mohammad Sayeed today tasked Vice Chancellor, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University (BGSBU), to have three nursing colleges established at Rajouri, Jammu and Kishtwar districts.
He also issued directions for working out modalities related to registration, engaging faculty and buildings so that the colleges can be started at an earliest. “While BGSBU will establish its own School of Nursing & Paramedical Sciences within its Rajouri campus, the other two institutes would be its constituent colleges,” he stated.
The Chief Minister passed these directions while chairing the 16th Meeting of the J&K State Wakf Council during which he took several decisions aimed at making Wakf properties productive assets. The previous meeting of the Council was held on April 24 earlier this year.
The meeting, which began with the recitation of the Holy Quran, was also attended by Minister for Horticulture, Haj& Auqaf, A. R. Veeri, Advisor to the Chief Minister, Prof. Amitabh Mattoo, MP, Fayaz Ahmad Mir, Legislators, G. M. Saroori, Mohammad Khalil Bandh, Shah Mohammad Tantray, Firdous Ahmad Tak and Saif-ud-din Bhat, VC BGSBU, Prof. Musarrat Javed, VC IUST, Prof. A. R. Trag, Vice Chairman, J&K Wakf Board, Peer Mohammad Hussain, besides Special Officer Auqaf, Abdul Sattar. .
Referring to the requirement of nursing colleges, the Chief Minister said that besides two AIIMS, one in each province of Jammu and Kashmir, five new medical colleges are being established in the state. This, he said will create a demand for trained paramedics, particularly nurses, as and when these health institutions start functioning. “Human resource development in health and education sectors should be the prime focus of the J&K Wakf Council and Wakf Board,” he added.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister also issued directions for setting up a model school at Jammu, in which some seats could be earmarked for children belonging to poorest and underprivileged sections of the society. He also approved construction of flats on Wakf land at Patta Bohri on a PPP mode which will help in setting up durable assets and improving internal revenue generation of the Council.
The meeting also discussed construction of flats and commercial complexes on wakf land at several other places to augment the revenue base of the Council. Setting up shops and shopping complexes in Rajouri district on Wakf land also came up for discussion in the meeting.
Later, the Committee headed by VC IUST briefed the Chief Minister about the progress achieved on establishing nursing colleges in Kashmir division under the aegis of the J&K Wakf Board. He informed the meeting about the possibilities of setting up nursing colleges at Awantipora, Anantnag, Kulgam, Chrar-e-Sharief as well as North Kashmir.
Earlier, Secretary Revenue, Haj & Auqaf, Mohammad Afzal Bhat, made a detailed presentation before the Chief Minister on the projects taken in hand by the Wakf Council.
The other members who attended the meeting included Shah Mohammad Chowdhary, Abdul Gani Dar, Mufti Anayatullah, Mohammad Noorani, G. A. Khwaja, A. R. Wani, A. W. Tak, Dr. Nisar Ahmad Wani, Nazir Ahmad Peer, Dr. Mohammad Assadullah Wani, besides the members of State Wakf Board, Khalid Muzaffar, Advocate Azhar-ul-Amin, Maulana Showkat Keng, Ghulam Hassan Shah, Bashir Ahmad Nehvi and Mrs. Mian Altaf Sarwar.