JOIN USMedical students oppose ESIC move, disrupt OPD
Students at the ESIC Dental College in Rohini staged a protest outside the hospital disrupting OPD services for over two hours on Thursday. The students were protesting the Employee’s State Insurance Corporation’s (ESIC) decision to exit the field of medical education.
On Thursday, the dental outdoor patient department (OPD) was blocked from 8 am to 10.30 am. Students also initially blocked the medical OPD but let patients in as several more patients would be inconvenienced.
“We blocked the medicine OPD only for a short while. The dental OPD was blocked for two and a half hours. We finally withdrew dharna from outside the OPD once our faculty members and other doctors at the hospital requested us to not disrupt the OPD services further,” said a member of the student protest group.
“Even though blocking the OPD was not the most justified way to protest, we had to resort to it as we were helpless,” the member added. The OPD services resumed after 10.30 am.
Students are unhappy with the Corporation’s decision to shut down the colleges. Currently, seven colleges are run by the corporation.
Students at the protest said the faculty members and administrative staff have already started resigning after the corporation submitted a memorandum that it will not be able to run the medical colleges anymore. There will be no further admissions to the medical and dental colleges run by the Corporation.
“The college needs to be recognised by the Dental Council of India for us to get degrees. It will be recognised only when the medical body finds there is a definite number of administrative staff, faculty members and students. Several faculty members have tendered resignation and if the college is not DCI-recognised, we will not be qualified doctors,” said Priyanjali Datta, a third year student, Dental College, Rohini.
“Our future will suffer because of this decision,” said Ravina Gulati, another third year student at the college.
The students are planning to hold a protest on Friday in ESIC medical institute in
Basaidarapur.