Britain’s leading educational institution, Imperial College London, has denied the Punjab government’s claim and clarified that it has no plans to open a campus abroad, especially in Lahore.
According to Imperial College, all its campuses are located in the UK, and there is no intention to establish any new campus abroad.
This clarification by Imperial College London came after the Punjab government, PML-N and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s team claimed that Imperial College London would open its campus in Lahore, and it would be in Nawaz Sharif IT City.
Media reports and social media posts claimed that a modern 300-bed hospital would also be built along with the campus. This announcement was made on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) by various official accounts, including Maryam Aurangzeb and the official account of the Punjab government.
The college, in a statement on its website, clarified that all its educational centres are located in the UK, and those who want to know about Imperial’s international activities should get information through the International Relations Office.
It may be recalled that in May last year, Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz had officially inaugurated the Nawaz Sharif IT City. The project is spread over 853 acres and has been declared a tax-free zone for 10 years. The government claims that international technology companies are interested in the project.
Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Shahzad S. Akbar also strongly criticised Maryam Nawaz and the PML-N after Imperial College’s denial, saying that Maryam Nawaz has been caught once again.
Shahzad Akbar said in a tweet that Maryam Nawaz’s servants have still turned out to be award-level experts in the art of fabricating fake news.
On the other hand, the Punjab Central Business District Development Authority (PCBDDA), also known as Central Business District Punjab (CBD Punjab), in a clarification press release, said, “The upcoming Healthcare University and Affiliated Medical College at CBD NSIT is a collaborative initiative between NovaCare and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (UK), an independent NHS institution.”
“The project remains firmly on track under the NovaCare–ICHT partnership, advancing our mission to establish a world-class hub for healthcare education, research, and innovation at CBD NSIT, Lahore, under the direct supervision of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust (UK),” the release added.
