Salaria takes over Gian Sagar, own college may lose approval

Gagan K Teja and Vishav Bharti

Tribune News Service

Patiala/Chandigarh, April 19

In a surprising development, BJP leader Swaran Salaria, Chairman, Chintpurni Medical College and Hospital, Pathankot, has taken over the management of Gian Sagar Medical Charitable Trust. The medical, dental and nursing colleges being run by the Trust in Banur are facing closure owing to a fiscal crisis.

Even as Salaria claims that he has taken charge of the Trust on the condition that he will clear all its pending liabilities and will make the colleges functional in the coming two days, the staff have expressed uncertainty considering the fact that Salaria’s own Chintpurni Medical College in Pathankot is in trouble. They rue that Salaria has been unable to run the medical college properly.

Salaria claims that six of the eight board members of the Trust resigned on April 17 and the two remaining members would follow the suit soon. He would make his own team to run the institution, he said. Salaria held a meeting with staff members of the college yesterday. Meanwhile, Dean of Gian Sagar Medical College Dr AS Sekhon has resigned from his post.

In its inspection report, the Medical Council of India has found glaring deficiencies at Chintpurni Medical College, Pathankot. The college is likely to lose recognition and will not be able to admit students for the upcoming session.

Earlier on the direction of the Supreme Court, the college was given conditional permission to admit students in 2014-15, but was denied permission in 2015-16.

Last year, the Supreme Court-mandated Lodha Committee (Oversight Committee) had allowed the college to admit one batch of 150 students with the condition to remove the anomalies and deposit a security, which can be forfeited if the college failed to comply with the orders. The college has, however, failed to meet the requirements.

An inspection of the college was carried out on March 7, and the report noted that there were 24 glaring deficiencies. Some of them include 87 per cent shortage in faculty, 82 per cent shortage of resident doctors, low number of patients coming to the hospital OPD and no patient admitted for indoor treatment. The MCI observed: “The college has failed to comply with the conditions laid down by the Oversight Committee.” Besides forfeiting the security, the council recommended the college not to admit students for the next two years.