Private colleges do not have facilities
Picture used for representational purpose. (Photo: DC/File)
Chennai: Expressing shock that some private medical colleges had admitted students even without adequate beds, the Madras high court dismissed petitions from three such institutions in the city, one of which is run by the family of a former DMK Union minister and was barred by the Central government from admitting students for current academic year 2014-15.
“Students of medicine learn more from patients than from books. This is why the regulations prescribe bed occupancy ratio even for initial permission. The permitted annual intake of a college itself was fixed based upon the number of beds available in the associated hospitals. Therefore, there cannot be a dilution of standards relating to the bed occupancy ratio,” said Justice V.
Ramasubramanian. The judge made the observations while passing three separate orders, dismissing petitions from Sri Muthukumaran Medical College, Madha Medical College and Research Institute, and Tagore Medical College and Hospital.
In the case of Muthukumaran college, the judge pulled up the institution for admitting students for three years even before obtaining planning permission from the authorities. “What is shocking is that all the buildings put up by the trust were without the approval of the CMDA,” the judge added.
The judge said the communications exchanged between the Muthukumaran Trust, CMDA and MCI discloses that the petitioner never obtained any approval for the construction of the buildings; some pockets of land on which the college was located were actually government poromboke lands in which there was actually a water course.
“This is not a simple case of approval for the regularisation of buildings put up without planning permission. It is a case of construction on poromboke lands and construction on a water course. Therefore, MCI is justified in taking serious note of this deficiency,” the judge added.
Based on the surprise inspection made by the Medical Council of India, pointing out several deficiencies, particularly deficiency of teaching faculty and/or residents and deficiency relating to bed occupancy ratio, the Centre refused to permit the three institutions from admitting students. The three institutions filed the present petitions.
( Source : dc )
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