KARACHI: The first cabinet of the Health Reporters Association (HRA) has been formally announced, with all office-bearers elected unopposed through mutual consensus. Senior journalist Akhtar Shaheen Rind was elected President while Imran Pirzada was elected General Secretary of the association for the term 2026-27.
The announcement was made during a meeting held at Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) House Karachi, attended by a large number of health reporters associated with electronic, print, and digital media. Following detailed consultation among members, all office-bearers were unanimously elected without contest.
According to the announcement, Safdar Butt was elected Senior Vice President, Imdad Soomro Vice President, Ahsan Chandio Deputy Secretary, and Shaheen Siddiqui Joint Secretary. Similarly, Ibrahim Rind was elected Finance Secretary, Kanwal Jatoi Information Secretary, and Naila Nizam Deputy Information Secretary.
The Executive Committee members include Abid Khan, Waseem Hashmi, Raja Irshad Ali Asadi, Maria Ismail Memon, Shahid Mirani, Rizwan Jalali, and Pawan Kumar.
On the occasion, President of Pakistan Medical Association Karachi Dr. Ismail Memon welcomed the health reporters to PMA House and congratulated the newly elected cabinet. Besides cabinet members, Sanwal Sheikh, Liaquat Jatoi, Waheed Memon, Ahsan Jatoi and others were also present at the meeting.
Addressing the gathering, newly elected President Akhtar Shaheen Rind said the establishment of the Health Reporters Association was aimed at addressing the professional challenges, welfare concerns, and rights of health journalists. He said journalists covering the health sector play a vital role in creating awareness in society, therefore providing them with a strong and organized platform was the need of the hour.
He further stated that the new cabinet would work actively for the promotion of health journalism, welfare of journalists, organization of training programs, and dissemination of authentic health information to the public. He emphasized that positive and responsible journalism could contribute significantly towards building a better society.
The ceremony concluded with a luncheon hosted for the participants.
