Cox's Bazar Medical College
Students get assurance of meeting demands
Students of Cox's Bazar Medical College yesterday stage a hunger strike in front of the deputy commissioner's office demanding setting up of a permanent campus and solution to other problems of the institution. Photo: STAR
The students of Cox's Bazar Medical College, who yesterday began a fast unto death to realise their three-point demand, postponed the programme after seven and a half hours following assurance from the higher authorities of meeting the demands. As many as 93 students of the college started hunger strike in front of the deputy commissioner's office at 10:00am and continued until 5:30pm. The students have been agitating since April 4 to press the demands for setting up a permanent college campus, solution to accommodation problem, appointment of teachers and setting up an examination centre at the college for first professional MBBS examinations. They put off the programme when Dr Arup Dutta Bappi, vice-principal of the college, and district Awami League acting president Ahmed Hossain conveyed a message of assurance from the higher authorities to them (students). The students said though the college was established two years ago, it has no permanent campus. They alleged that land for the college has not been acquired yet due to non-cooperation of the high-ups. They said as the college has no permanent campus, appointments of department heads in the four departments of the college and assistant professors are not possible. Without departmental heads, there would not be any scope for setting up an examination centre at the college, the students said, adding that 42 students of the second year would not be able to sit for the first professional MBBS exams scheduled for July this year. The academic activities of the college have been carried out in a building of Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital for the last two years. Sources concerned said the district administration has earmarked 24 acres of land for college campus in Jhilongja area of Cox's Bazar town and sent a proposal to the ministry concerned for acquiring the land. Taka 27 crore foreign aid for purchasing land has also been lying idle for long, sources added. A meeting will be held at the office of the land ministry's secretary on April 11 to evaluate the justification of the proposal for acquiring the land. A teacher of the College preferring anonymity said if the land for the College was not acquired by June this year, Tk 27 crore allocated for the purpose would have to be returned. Sources said there are four departments in the College--anatomy, physiology, biochemistry and community medicine. Each department should have six teachers. But there are only 13 teachers instead of 24. At present, the college has 95 students. Of them, 53 are in first year and 42 in second year.
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