Kerala University of Health Sciences affiliation for CPAS shortly

KOTTAYAM: The Centre for Professional and Advanced Studies (CPAS) under which  nine School of Medical Education institutions  function will be affiliated to the Kerala University of Health Sciences (KUHS) shortly. The KUHS governing council has decided to give affiliation in principle and given it one-year time to abide by the norms in the appointments of teaching and non-teaching staff. The government had formed the CPAS society last month to transfer the SME institutions, which were under the MG University, to the KUHS. The teaching and non-teaching staff of the SME  had raised fears that they may lose their jobs if the  CPAS is affiliated to  the KUHS.

The MG University and the KUHS follow different norms in the  appointments. “The approval for the affiliation of the CPAS to  the KUHS has been made in principle. It has to fulfil the norms for the staff  appointments within one year,” KUHS registrar M.K. Mangalam told this newspaper. The KUHS will conduct the inspection at the SME institutions only after one year. According to Section 50 1 of the KUHS Act 2010, all institutions except professional medical colleges or teaching institutions under deemed universities and the national institutes are barred from conducting courses in modern medicine, dental, nursing, pharmacy and other paramedical and allied subjects.

The KUHS Act made it impossible for the SME institutions to continue under the MG University and a special society was constituted for affiliating them to the KUHS. There are a total of nine SME institutions, including six nursing colleges, two pharmacy colleges and one institution conducting various courses at  Gandhinagar. The second and third-year students will get MG University certificates. Those who start the course from next month will get certificates from the KUHS.  Previously, the MG University was running the SME institutions directly under it.