PG medical students protest seeking hike in stipend

Seeking a hike in their stipend, postgraduate medical students of Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute staged a protest at the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital here on Wednesday.

The students, who currently receive a stipend of Rs 25,000, demanded that they be paid on a par with stipends their counterparts received in other states. Some states offer PG students up to Rs 60,000 a month, they said.

The students contended that unlike most other courses, medical students put in extra years to complete their education, but the stipend poorly compensated their toil. With their shifts in the hospital stretching up to 48 hours sometimes and their weekends and holidays sacrificed, the doctors feel that they are placed in a challenging situation with poor pay.

Speaking to Deccan Herald, a PG student said, “After five and a half years of undergraduate studies, we have to do one year of rural service. After that, one has to keep aside at least two years to prepare for PG medical seats.

“Following this, we have three years of PG and three years of rural service. If we do not complete the mandatory three years, we have to pay a fine of Rs 25 lakh. By the time one gets a PG medical seat, we will be 28 or 29. With a stipend of Rs 25,000, how can we manage our expenses and families? At that age, we cannot even ask our parents for money.”

The doctor added that she travelled 13 km every day to reach the hospital early in the morning.

Skyrocketing expenses

With expenses skyrocketing in a city like Bengaluru, they are unable to meet their expenses, she said.

Another doctor said, “We do not want to hamper the care of patients. Hence, we are going for a peaceful protest. After PG, during the rural service period, they pay us only Rs 35,000. It is very difficult for us to manage our lives with that amount after all the hard work we put in.”

Memorandums

The doctors had submitted memorandums to the chief minister, principal secretary of the medical education department and Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil last year. However, there was no response from the government.

The director of medical education department has proposed an incremental hike – up to Rs 30,000 for first year PG students, Rs 35,000 for second year and Rs 40,000 for third year students. But this too has not been taken into consideration, the students said.