The federal government has renamed the Chinese-funded infectious diseases hospital in Islamabad's Chak Shahzad as the "Pak-China Friendship Hospital" on the directives of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, replacing the name "Margalla Hospital" given to it by its new management, Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal said on Saturday.
He stated that the Indus Hospital and Health Network (IHHN) had initially named the facility Margalla Hospital, but following directions from the Prime Minister's Office, it was decided to rename it in recognition of China's contribution. "The hospital was built with Chinese assistance, and the prime minister has directed that it should be named Pak-China Friendship Hospital," he said, adding that it would now provide healthcare services to residents of Chak Shahzad and surrounding areas.
The 250-bed hospital, originally known as the Isolation Hospital and Infectious Treatment Centre (IHITC), was set up in 2020 during the first wave of COVID-19. It was built by the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) in collaboration with the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) in a record 40 days.
According to official records, China provided a $4 million grant, while the total construction cost was reported at around Rs 980 million at the time of its inauguration in July 2020. Spread over about 40 kanals near the NIH, the hospital was designed for the isolation and treatment of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, and was equipped with patient wards, laboratories, administrative offices, and other infrastructure.
It was inaugurated by then-prime minister Imran Khan on July 9, 2020, at a ceremony attended by senior government officials, military leadership, and the Chinese ambassador. However, the facility later faced operational difficulties, including shortages of medical staff and problems in continuing services after the COVID-19 emergency subsided.
The hospital remained underutilised for a considerable period, raising questions over the use of a facility built with foreign assistance at a time when Islamabad's public hospitals were facing a growing patient load. The government subsequently decided to operationalise it through a public-private partnership instead of running it directly through the Ministry of Health.
Mustafa Kamal said a competitive and transparent process was followed in line with Public Procurement Regulatory Authority (PPRA) rules before the IHHN was selected. He said the aim was to make the hospital fully functional rather than leave it as an underutilised public asset.