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Islamabad: Federal Minister for Housing and Works Mian Riaz Hussain Pirzada visited the Thalassemia Centre of Sundas Foundation in F-9 Park Islamabad where he inaugurated a new activity room for thalassemic children and an electric cart donated by Allied Bank. The cart is intended to facilitate the transportation of children from the outer gate of the facility.
According to Press Information Department, the minister, serving as the chief guest at the ceremony, commended the Sundas Foundation for its pioneering efforts as a non-profit organization providing free blood transfusion services to thousands of children across Pakistan. He praised the dedication of the foundation’s management and paid tribute to the late founding chairman Muneer Ahmed Qureshi, also known as Munnu Bhai, for his involvement in aiding thalassemia patients. The minister emphasized the importance of legislation, awareness, and mandatory premarital lab tests, alongside modern research to prevent thalassemia in Pakistan.
During the event, the minister distributed gifts to the children present. Director of Sundas Foundation Islamabad, Air Vice Marshal HI(M) Aftab Hussain, outlined the foundation’s operations, noting its 26-year history and expansion to nine major cities with twelve centers. He highlighted that the organization transfuses 30,000 blood bags yearly, providing 250-300 units of screened blood and products daily. The Islamabad center, active for six years, has benefited 52,243 patients with various blood disorders, offering free transfusion services, medicines, and testing facilities. The facility’s newly established activity room is reportedly the first of its kind worldwide for thalassemic children. He acknowledged challenges such as inflation and changing trends in blood donation.
The ceremony concluded with a vote of thanks from senior actor and director Khalid Abbas Dar, who expressed gratitude to the organizers, donors, and the minister.