JOIN USUkraine-returnee students can resume studies in state's 60 med colleges
The government on Monday announced that it will facilitate the continuation of education of Ukraine-returned medical students in all the 60 medical colleges functioning in the state.
Health and Medical Education Minister Dr K Sudhakar announced that a high-level committee has been formed to chalk out ways to safeguard the academic interests of these 700 students.
Until last week, the state government had maintained that it will soon write to the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the Centre, seeking help to address the problems of Ukraine-returned students to Karnataka.
However, holding a meeting with the students, parents, officials from the Medical Education department and Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) in Vidhana Soudha, Sudhakar said, “We have arrived at a decision temporarily that students can resume their studies in our medical colleges with immediate effect. We are not telling the colleges to officially absorb them, but provide them clinical exposure and theory knowledge.”
The minister clarified that this facility will be completely free of cost and none of the students has to pay anything to the colleges.
“Parallelly, I am appointing a high-level committee headed by the principal secretary, medical education and comprising the vice-chancellor and registrar, RGUHS, director, medical education and deans of a few government and private colleges to deliberate on this issue. The committee will come up with recommendations, suggestions in about 10 days. They will be passed on to the NMC and the Centre for consideration,”
Sudhakar said.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already been holding meetings in this regard and “we will submit our opinion on the issue as expressed by experts in this
committee”.
“But I appeal to all the students, not just as a minister, but like their own brother, to continue their education in Karnataka. The state government will provide all the required help and support,” the minister said.
When asked whether the government will hold a special exam for these students to be qualified for practice in India, the minister replied, “We are not registering these students here as doctors, but only facilitating the continuation of their studies, which otherwise may go waste. The registration and other aspects will come up in the future and we will discuss it then.”
He clarified that the high-level committee will frame rules on ‘admission’ of these students to the 60 colleges and whether they will be allowed to join colleges in the same district or sent to neighbouring districts.