LAHORE:Punjab government has decided to offer medical facilities for test-tube babies at the government level for the first time, helping childless couples to take advantage of the facility, according to a report on Tuesday

The first-of-its-kind facility at the government level in Pakistan will become operational from June as the health department in Punjab has established departments for utilizing IVF technology at government health facilities for women and children in Lahore. The facility for test-tube babies will be offered free of cost in the government centres, contrary to the private sector, where hefty amounts are being charged for the provision of the facility.

Moreover, the government facility will also have a unit to determine mental and physical health issues among children prior to their birth while it would also have a facility to identify health-related issues among pregnant women. The Punjab government has launched multiple health initiatives in the province for improving the medical facilities and recently, the government launched Sehat Card initiative, allowing the population of the province to get access to the free medical facility of upto Rs1 million.