Hyderabad College Dupes 400 Students Over Affiliations
The first-year students who took admission to the various BSc courses in Sigma Institute of Management and Medical Sciences (SIMMS) have filed a police complaint highlighting that their college was not legitimate and did not provide clarity on its affiliations with universities
Hyderabad: For about 400 students who were enrolled at a private institute at Moosarambagh offering various courses in 'health sciences', the academic journey began with confusion and alarm. They are worried about the legitimacy of their institute and the credibility of the degrees they are enrolled for.
The first-year students who took admission to the various BSc courses in Sigma Institute of Management and Medical Sciences (SIMMS) have filed a police complaint highlighting that their college was not legitimate and did not provide clarity on its affiliations with universities.
“The students were initially informed that it was an autonomous institute. Later, they said it is affiliated to Sunrise University in Rajasthan and runs its campus in Moosarambagh, Hyderabad. Close to their first semester exams in October 2024, they were forced to go to Ibrahimpatnam and write their exams at an institute named 'Green Fields Institutions'. Surprisingly, the students noted that their question paper mentioned the name of a Manipur-based university, which they unheard of.“
This created a lot of suspicion among students who had already shelled out around `69,000 to `90,000 as a fee for different courses alongside other fees related to admissions, examinations, among others. The students approached the director of medical education at Koti, and were told that the college does not have any documentation in their records.
As per the 'Green Field Institutions' website, it has two campuses — one in Moosarambagh and another in Ibrahimpatnam. It offers courses in agriculture and allied health sciences. The website mentions that the institute has 'collaborations' with Sunrise University of Rajasthan and Bir Tikendrajit University of Manipur. From media reports, the students found out the owner of Sunrise University was caught running a fake degree scam last year.
"When we joined the college, we were told it was an autonomous institute and that we would write exams in Moosarambagh itself. Close to our first semester exams, we were told the college name has been changed to 'Green Fields Institutions' and the exams will be held in Ibrahimpatnam. On the day of our first exam, we saw the question paper mentioned 'Bir Tikendrajit University'. We later checked that it is based in Imphal, Manipur. As we were confused and suspicious about the college's legitimacy. We went to the DME office and found out that the college has no documentation on record. That is when we understood that we had been defrauded," said a student from first year BSc Medical Lab Technology course.
The students' fee receipts at the time of admission showed only 'SIMMS' initially but later changed to 'Green Fields Institutions'. The college has been running the first and second year batches for undergraduate courses in Radiology and Medical Imaging Technology, Cardiac Care, Optometry, Anaesthesia, Dialysis, Operation Theatre and Physiotherapy. On Tuesday, with the help of the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), the students filed a complaint with the Malakpet police.
"The institution is allegedly operating in unauthorised collaborations with universities based in Manipur and Rajasthan. Around 300 students have already enrolled and paid up to 90 per cent of their tuition fee. There are media reports confirming that the management of Sunrise University was arrested in connection with educational fraud. We have verified from the DME that no official affiliation or recognition was granted to SIMMS. We request an investigation into the operations of SIMMS, verify the legitimacy of their affiliations, take strict legal action against those involved in fraud and ensure that students' rights are safeguarded," said the police complaint.
