Gian Sagar crisis: Mgmt in the soup

Gagan K Teja

Tribune News Service

Patiala, March 1

The management of Gian Sagar Medical College and Hospital, Banur, seems to be in the soup as the four-member committee constituted by the Punjab Medical Education Department to look into the crisis being faced by the college is likely to send a negative report on the management and the functioning of the institution.

Following the non-payment of salaries to the medical and paramedical staff for the past five months, the faculty has not been providing teaching and medical facilities in the institute for the past one month, causing great loss to the students and patients. 

They have been demanding a permanent solution to the problem — the staff usually has to take to protest following the non-disbursal of salaries every year. The students joined the agitation and hit the roads, demanding timely salaries to their teachers and technical staff. The students are also demanding adequate staff, hostel facilities and proper utilisation of their fee.

To understand the causes of the present crisis, the Punjab Government had constituted a four-member committee of professors and heads, including two doctors from Patiala and two from Hoshiarpur. They visited the college today and had a discussion with the faculty and students.

One of the members said the institution was completely paralysed, but the management was least bothered about it. He said there were no emergency facilities and all wards were lying vacant due to the ongoing protest.

He said the students were teary eyed and worried about their future. Even the eight PGs that have been deputed on the institute had requested that they be shifted to some other college, because they were neither getting any stipend nor there was a proper provision of food and electricity.

He said we would bring the facts to the notice of the government. “Apart from high liabilities, the management is incompetent to run the college. Even if they somehow manage to resolve the present crisis, they will face problems in future.  The government should hire some qualified private agency to run the institute or should take it under its own wings,” he added.

Meanwhile, one of the students said it was the duty of the state government to intervene and save our future. They should take the responsibility to run the institute. Moreover, it would be an asset for the government, considering the vast infrastructure and facilities available in the institute.