AYURVEDIC MEDICAL COLLEGE LACKS BASIC INFRASTRUCTURE, STUDENTS COMPLAIN

The Himalayan (Himalayan News Service)
March 25, 2014 11:12 PM

Birgunj, Nepal: Students of Ayurveda Medical College in Birgunj have complained about lack of infrastructure at the college.

Affiliated to Tribhuvan University, the college had come into operation four years ago with the permission of Ayurveda Medical Council, in Shreepur Tole of Birgunj. A total of 51 students are pursuing Bachelor’s in Ayurveda Medical Science (BAMS) at the college.

According to students, the college does not have adequate teaching staff, classrooms, and other basic equipment for practical classes, among other things. The college does not even have its own building and a hospital.

Despite the requirement of at least 15 teachers for the course, the college is making do with only four teachers, including part-timers.

“The management only approaches us at the time of fee collection,” lamented a student. “College Principal Dr Krishna Mohan Jha is never around. The college infrastructure is no different than that of a village school. That should explain the dwindling number of students in recent years,” the student said.

A total of 17 and 22 students were enrolled in the first and second batches respectively, while the latest batch has only nine students.

Apart from these problems, there is an ongoing dispute between two groups of board members over whether or not to shift the college to the Capital city.

“Though the board committee Chairperson Pradip Shumsher JBR and his group want to move the college to Kathmandu, local investors are against it. “Students had also written to TU Institute of Medicine, Ayurveda Medical Council, and the district administration office informing them about the sorry state of the college, but to no avail.

Meanwhile, the academic director of the college Dr Devesh Chandra Pathak claimed the college had been maintaining good academic standards.

“We may lack good infrastructure due to fund crunch, but the academic part is going on well,” he argued, claiming the college is yet to collect about Rs 18.7 million in dues from students. Hospital Board Committee Chair Pradip Shumsher, however, said there was no point in further investing in the college unless it was shifted to Kathmandu. Pathak, however, said the college will soon construct its own building on a plot of land in Birgunj.