Hyderabad: Summer classes anger doctors

Hyderabad: Some private medical colleges are conducting classes even during the summer holidays. The Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences has sent a circular declaring month-long summer vacation, but some private colleges have ignored this.

They claim to be running special classes and are charging hostel and transport fees from students, alleges Telangana Junior Doctors Association (TJUDA).

TJUDA president Vijender Goud said, “Many private colleges are not declaring the holidays and charging students hostel fee and transportation fee. The Medical Council of India curriculum is the same for all colleges and it clearly stipulates in how many hours a subject should be completed. The university has clearly given instructions to all the colleges to declare a summer holiday.  that the private colleges are running the colleges for earning profits by charging fees.”

Dr Bhaskar Rao, president of the private medical colleges association says private colleges don’t generally hold classes during vacations.  “However, sometimes they might take extra classes for the first year students as their syllabus is vast. Earlier, the course was for two years but that has been reduced to ten months. To complete it in the particular time period is a little difficult and to compensate that the colleges will take extra classes.”  He added that if the college charges for this it should be a meagre amount.

Asked about this, the Registrar of the Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences was very reluctant to answer.