KARACHI: Renowned religious scholar Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman on Sunday formally launched the construction of the University Medical Complex (UMC), a state-of-the-art charitable hospital project being developed off University Road in Gulistan-e-Jauhar, which aims to provide free medical treatment to over 200,000 needy patients annually after its completion.
The University Medical Complex is being developed by Imamia Medics International (IMI), a United Nations-accredited organisation comprising Pakistani-origin medical professionals, mainly based in North America, with a long history of providing humanitarian medical services in Pakistan and abroad.
Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony, Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman said the UMC would serve humanity without discrimination and that providing quality healthcare to the underprivileged was fully in line with the teachings of Islam and the message of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (SAW).
He expressed concern that healthcare and education had increasingly become commercialised, making them inaccessible for disadvantaged communities, and praised IMI and its partner organisations for establishing a not-for-profit tertiary care hospital dedicated to deserving patients.
Later, addressing a fundraising event held in connection with the launch, former caretaker Chief Minister of Sindh Justice (retd) Maqbool Baqar described the University Medical Complex as a timely and much-needed initiative to meet Karachi’s growing healthcare needs. He urged philanthropists to wholeheartedly support the project to ensure its speedy completion and stressed the importance of preserving its welfare-oriented mission throughout all phases of development and operations.
Vice-Chancellor of Dow University of Health Sciences (DUHS), Prof Dr Nazli Hossain, announced DUHS’s full support for the UMC project and expressed confidence that it would achieve its social welfare objectives. She also appreciated IMI’s continued charitable healthcare services in underprivileged areas of Pakistan and internationally.
Renowned religious scholar Mufti Fazal Hamdard also appealed to philanthropists and donors to generously support the project, stating that serving humanity in distress was among the core principles of Islam.
Briefing participants, IMI Founder Dr Wajih Rizvi said the University Medical Complex had been designed as a comprehensive multi-speciality healthcare facility, offering emergency and trauma care, women and child health services, and advanced treatment for infectious and non-infectious diseases. He added that in the long term, the complex would also function as a centre for medical education and research.
Dr Rizvi noted that Karachi’s rapidly growing population had placed immense pressure on existing healthcare facilities, particularly affecting low- and middle-income families. He said the UMC would help bridge this gap by providing quality healthcare services free of cost to those in need.
He further shared that IMI currently operates 25 charitable clinics across Pakistan, providing free medical care to around 150,000 patients annually. He highlighted that IMI’s United Nations accreditation, obtained 25 years ago and upgraded to consultative status in 2006, underscored the organisation’s credibility and sustained humanitarian impact.
Dr Rizvi also recalled IMI’s role in responding to major humanitarian emergencies, including the 2005 earthquake, recent floods in Pakistan, and the Haiti earthquake.
The fundraising session, conducted by actor Khalid Anum, saw philanthropists and donors pledge over Rs 141 million for the University Medical Complex, while renowned philanthropist Nadra Panjwani announced a contribution of Rs 5 million in support of the project.
The launch of the University Medical Complex marks a significant step towards expanding access to compassionate, welfare-oriented healthcare services for underserved communities in Karachi.
