ESIC to shut its medical colleges

The Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) has decided to shut its medical colleges as this is not its core function, leading to the students protesting the move here Monday.

The corporation has expressed its inability to meet the objectives to establish medical colleges and training institutes to serve the insured and non-insured persons of the ESIC scheme.

"The ESIC should exit the field of medical education entirely as it is not the core function of the ESIC and other objectives is unlikely to be met," said the order issued at an ESIC meet held Dec 4.

It was also decided to hand over the ongoing medical colleges and other medical education institutions, having separate infrastructure, to state governments willing for such a transfer.

Though it has been running hospitals under the scheme for the purpose, the ESI Act was amended in 2010 to allow it to set up medical colleges. Presently, 13 such institutions are in various stages of construction.

Currently the corporation, runs seven medical colleges including a dental college in north Delhi's Rohini area, with few others in various stages of construction. They are estimated to be over Rs.10,000 crore.

The corporation during the meeting has also urged all the medical colleges not to undertake any further admissions as the medical programmes will continue only till the admitted students pass out or are adjusted by medical colleges of the state governments.

The students studying in the existing medical colleges under the ESIC, however, have claimed that due to the ESIC's order, the faculties and administrative staffs have already tendered their resignations which is a reason the recognition of Medical Council of India (MCI) could be withdrawn.

"Every medical college has to have a required number of students, teachers and administrative staff to get recognised by the MCI. But due to the ESIC decision all the faculties have started leaving the institutions," Chandra Mohan, president of the ESIC students association, told IANS.

"If the MCI withdraws its recognition, non of the students are going to get any Amedical degree," Mohan, who is also a student of ESIC Dental college in Delhi, added.

The students will also stage a protest Tuesday at Jantar Mantar against the decision of the corporation.