CM launches first-ever govt-run ‘Deceased Transportation Service’

LAHORE: Chief Minister Punjab Maryam Nawaz Sharif launched Pakistan’s first-ever government-run “Deceased Transportation Service.”

The CM handed over the keys of vehicles for the service to authorities in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Multan and also inspected the vehicles.

The Chief Minister met Rescue personnel, appreciated their services, and directed them to perform their duties with devotion to the reward of Allah and a spirit of public service.

Under the first phase, the service will provide free-of-cost and dignified transfer of the deceased from government hospitals to their homes in Lahore, Multan and Rawalpindi. By June, the scope of the service will be gradually extended to every tehsil of Punjab, with a dedicated ambulance to be provided in each tehsil for this purpose under the “deceased transportation service”.

Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said it was unfortunate that private transporters charge excessive fares from families in cases of death at hospitals. “In the moment of grief of losing a loved one, we are with you and will remain with you,” she said, adding that Rescue personnel should not accept any payment even if offered by the bereaved families.

Provincial Health Minister Khwaja Salman Rafique termed the initiative commendable and said that, for now, the service had been launched within city limits in Lahore, Rawalpindi and Multan. He added that private ambulances would be arranged in the second phase for other cities.

According to a briefing, the service can be accessed by calling 1122 for the transfer of the deceased from hospital to home, and a dedicated desk will be set up in every government hospital. Trained drivers in uniform will be available round the clock.

Rescue 1122 Director General Dr Rizwan Naseer said the service would also facilitate the transfer of bodies to hospital morgues where required. He added that the system would be monitored through a smart rescue management and dispatch system.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026