LHC suspends PMDC medical fee hike

The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Friday suspended a Pakistan Medical and Dental Council (PMDC) notification allowing an increase in fees charged by medical colleges. Justice Khalid Ishaq issued this order while hearing a petition filed by Lahore's Central Park Medical College challenging the PMDC notification. Advocate Ramzan Dhuddi, representing the petitioner college, argued that the college had charged students Rs2.1 million in fees at the time of admission. He submitted that the PMDC subsequently issued a notification allowing medical colleges to increase their annual fees by five per cent. According to the petitioner, the PMDC also issued a notification allowing the collection of fees linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The counsel argued that the PMDC lacked the authority to issue a notification increasing medical students' fees. He contended that parliament could amend the relevant laws governing the PMDC and issue directions concerning an increase in medical education fees. The counsel requested the court to declare the PMDC notification allowing an increase in medical students' fees illegal and set it aside. After hearing the arguments, the court suspended the PMDC notification. Meanwhile, the PMDC has withdrawn an earlier notification that extended the duration of the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) programme to five years and revived the original four years tenure, providing relief to students from paying an additional year's fees. According to a notification issued by the PMDC, the BDS framework notification issued on July 8, 2026 has been withdrawn following concerns raised by the Pakistan Dental Association and directions from parliamentary committees. "The BDS degree will be completed in four years, but one year of clerkship will be mandatory," PMDC President Dr Rizwan Taj said, speaking to The Express Tribune. "The decision will provide relief to students as they would no longer have to pay fees for the additional year." Fresh controversy Separately, the PMDC's decision to collect question papers from candidates immediately after the Medical and Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) has triggered fresh concerns over examination transparency and the mechanism for challenging disputed questions. In the latest letter addressed to the vice chancellors of all universities conducting MDCAT, the PMDC Examination Department directed that question papers be collected from candidates immediately after completion of the test. The letter further stated that no question paper should be given to any candidate, explaining that this measure is intended to ensure the safe and smooth conduct of the examination process. The directive is significant because more than 138,000 candidates are scheduled to appear in MDCAT 2026 across the country on September 20. The central concern being raised is what happens if a candidate believes that a question is ambiguous, contains an incorrect option, has more than one apparently correct answer or falls outside the prescribed syllabus.