Malappuram: Protest marches by youth organisations to the Government Medical College in Manjeri alongside the ongoing indefinite hunger strike by students created a ruckus on campus on Thursday.
Attempts were made to block the district collector Amit Meena who reached the hospital due to strong protests from various corners over the pathetic condition of the hospital wards, especially the paediatric ward and other facilities. The collector held an emergency meeting with hospital authorities on Thursday to resolve the protests by students over the dearth of teaching faculty and curtailed facilities for the patients.
“There are many issues at the medical college which can never be resolved quickly. I will take up the issues and meet the Director of Medical Education and the Director of Health Services on 25 of this month. A series of discussions are needed to find a workable solution for the issues. Hopefully by the end of this month some of the issues can be resolved,” Amit Meena said after a meeting principal in charge of the MCH Dr Cyriac Job and Dr K.V. Nandakumar, the superintendent of the MCH.
He also met the striking students. Though the collector promised a solution after discussing the issues with concerned departments at Thiruvananthapuram no assurance was given, the students said. they have demanded assurance of immediate solutions and decided to carry on the hunger strike until an assurance come from the concerned authority.
Meanwhile, one of the striking students was arrested after his health deteriorated. The students also contacted the minister for health K.K Shailaja seeking a solution for their demands.
The minister had informed them that three faculty members would join the surgery department on Friday and also assured time-bound remedial actions for the hostel and other facilities. However, the students are not satisfied with promises from the minister.
