Medical colleges to enforce MCI guidelines on ragging

“Technically,a committee must be in place every year,but due to ignorance among the students on the existence of such a cell,very few cases come up. Also,the lack of interest among the committee members renders the cell non functional,” said a senior professor of a medical college in the state.

This year,during undergraduate and postgraduate admissions,the colleges will have to enforce the guidelines. “We already had a poster presentation for the senior students. Every department has been notified about the anti-ragging guidelines and the strict punishments set by the MCI,and we will also be putting up posters all over the college,” said Dr Bharat Shah,Dean,B J Medical College. Ragging cases are reported mostly in the first two months of the new academic term. The anti-ragging committee will include senior professors,hostel wardens and members of the students union. Senior students will be made to sign a declaration during the admission procedure.

“The new entrants are being given complete information on the anti-ragging committee and they have also been given a set of phone numbers to contact while in need,” said Shailendra Vajpayee,Dean,Government Medical College,Surat.

Not only the medical colleges but the nursing colleges are also in the process of finalising the formation of the anti-ragging committee. “We have already finalised the teachers who would be involved in the committee and are awaiting the new batch to come in so that we could involve them as well.”

Ragging is not just about physical harm,but continuous taunts or mental harassment is an equally serious matter. We have decided to meet the students every six months to remind them of the anti-ragging measures,” said Harish Chaudhry,Principal,College of Nursing,SSG Hospital.