LHMC nursing students to call off stir

The strike by nursing students at the prestigious Lady Hardinge Medical College was today called off after authorities gave them "assurance" to redress some of their issues.

"We held a meeting with them today and tried to resolve the issue. There was some confusion among them about the administration aspects which we tried to relieve them of. Today, they returned to their classes," a senior official of the college said.

The nursing students' union had called he strike two days ago alleging that the quality of food served in the mess was "very bad" and "water supply in their hostels was erratic", among other issues.

"The food catering is done by a private contractor, and they had some issues with the menu. Since, the mess is managed by students only, we have asked them to improve the menu. For drinking water, another RO purifier plant we are planning to set up," the official said.

Last night, the students had threatened to "intensify" the agitation if their demands were not met.

"We met our director and he listened to our demands. The authorities have sought some time to address some of the issues raised by us. So, we have called off the strike," said a nursing student on the condition of anonymity.

Established in 1916, the LHMC is one of the oldest medical institutions in the country, only for women.

Nursing students had also complained about restriction on their movement out of the campus from 7 pm onwards.

"It is a residential course and we are complying with MCI norms. Also, we have to take care security of girls as LHMC also has a public hospital attached to it," the official claimed.