Maharashtra medical education minister launches e-learning solutions for students who returned from Ukraine, MUHS app

Maharashtra Medical Education Minister Amit Deshmukh also said efforts are underway to ensure that MUHS has its own college.

Indian nationals upon their arrival at the IGI Airport by an Air India flight from Ukraine amid rising Russia-Ukraine tension, in New Delhi. (PTI Photo)

Maharashtra Medical Education Minister Amit Deshmukh Thursday launched an e-learning solution for medical students who have returned from the war-torn country of Ukraine and also launched a mobile information app of the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS), Nashik. A live demo was provided to the students and their parents who were present at the virtual launch.

“I am very happy and congratulate the MUHS V-C and her team for expediting the work on developing a foster care kind of course for students who have returned from Ukraine. Today (Thursday) is the World Health Day and on this occasion, it is a timely effort by the MUHS to launch the initiative,” Deshmukh said.

Deshmukh also said efforts are underway to ensure that MUHS has its own college. “Steps are being taken by the state to introduce a medical college, hospital and research centre and we hope to complete the process to set up the college before the MUHS celebrates its silver jubilee next year,” he said.

It has been envisaged that MUHS should have its own college. However, in the interim period, the civil hospital at Nashik has started functioning from the Maharashtra Post Graduate Medical and Research Institute where faculty has been recruited and 30 odd doctors have joined.

“The aim is to eventually look at dual MD and PhD programmes and instead of being a run-of-the-mill institute, the effort is to promote it as a school of integrated health,” Lt Gen (retd) Madhuri Kanitkar, Vice Chancellor of MUHS, told The Indian Express.

Earlier, Lt Gen Kanitakar said at least 900 students who returned from Ukraine have registered for the e-learning solution and there is room for more.

Also Read | In Lok Sabha, MPs across party lines praise govt’s Ukraine evacuation efforts

“Having studied the curriculum that is taught to students in Ukraine, we realised they have a different way of teaching. It is not possible to amalgamate that system here. So, with the help of our experts and Elsevier, a noted medical publisher, the digital content has been prepared for a three-month course. This gives an opportunity to the students to study at their convenient time and convenience. Students have to register on the MUHS website and then access the content,” Lt Gen Kanitkar said.

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The content has been prepared topic-wise and students can select the curriculum he or she has been given by their university in Ukraine, Lt Gen Kanitkar added. The digital content will be provided free of cost to the students.

The modules have been prepared to ensure practical bedside training during the summer vacations. We will open a facilitator chat forum for difficulties and also provide practical workshops. Our experts will also be available for one-on-one consultations to address difficulties that students may face. We are also planning to make another app only for students’ issues, schemes and grievances.

Anuradha Mascarenhas

Anuradha Mascarenhas is a Senior Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. With a career spanning three decades, she is one of the most respected voices in Indian journalism regarding healthcare, science and environment and research developments. She also takes a keen interest in covering women's issues . Professional Background Education: A gold medalist in Communication and Journalism from Savitribai Phule Pune University and a Master’s degree in Literature. Author: She authored the biography At The Wheel Of Research, which chronicles the life and work of Dr. Soumya Swaminathan, the former Chief Scientist at the WHO. Key Focus: She combines scientific accuracy with storytelling, translating complex medical research into compelling public and human-interest narratives. Awards and Recognition Anuradha has won several awards including the Press Council of India's national award for excellence in journalism under the gender based reporting category in 2019 and the Laadli Media award (gender sensitivity -2024). A recipient of the Lokmat journalism award (gender category-2022), she was also shortlisted for the RedInk awards for excellence in journalism-2021. Her debut book At The Wheel Of Research, an exclusive biography of Dr Soumya Swaminathan the inaugural chief scientist of World Health Organisation was also nominated in the Popular Choice Category of JK Paper AUTHER awards. She has also secured competitive fellowships including the Laadli Media Fellowship (2022), the Survivors Against TB – New Research in TB Media Fellowship (2023) and is part of the prestigious 2025 India Cohort of the WomenLift Health Leadership Journey.” Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) 1. Cancer & Specialized Medical Care "Tata Memorial finds way to kill drug-resistant cancer cells" (Nov 26, 2025): Reporting on a breakthrough for triple-negative breast cancer, one of the most aggressive forms of the disease. Discipline, diet and purpose; How a 97-year-old professor defies ageing'' (Nov 15, 2025) Report about Prof Gururaj Mutalik, the first Head of Department at Pune's B J Government Medical College who at 97 credits his longevity to healthy habits and a strong sense of purpose. 2. Environmental Health (The "Breathless Pune" Series) Long-term exposure even to 'moderate' air leads to chronic heart, lung, kidney issues" (Nov 26, 2025): Part of an investigative series highlighting that even "safe" pollution levels are damaging to vital organs. "For every 10 µg/m3 increase in PM2.5 level, there was 6-8% jump in medicine sales" (Nov 23, 2025): Using commercial data to prove the direct link between air quality and respiratory illnesses in Pune. 3. Lifestyle & Wellness News "They didn't let cancer, diabetes and heart disease stop them from travelling" (Dec 22, 2025): A collaborative piece featuring survivors who share practical tips for traveling with chronic conditions. At 17, his BP shot up to 200/120 mmHG; Lancet study flags why child and teen hypertension doubled between 2000 and 2020'' (Nov 12,2025)--A report that focusses on 17-year-old-boy's hypertensive crisis and reflects the rising global trend of high blood pressure among children and adolescents. 4. Scientific Recognition & Infrastructure For promoting sci-comm, gender diversity: IUCAA woman prof highlighted in Nature" (Nov 25, 2025): Covering the global recognition of Indian women scientists in gender studies and physics. Pune researchers find a spiral galaxy like the Milky Way from early universe'' (December 3, 2025)- A report on how Indian researchers discovered a massive galaxy that existed when the universe was just 1.5 billion years old , one of the earliest to have been observed so far. Signature Beat: Health, Science & Women in Leadership Anuradha is known for her COVID-19 reportage, where she was one of the first journalists to provide detailed insights into the Covishield and Covaxin trials. She has a dedicated interest in gender diversity in health and science, often profiling women researchers who are breaking the "leaky pipeline" in STEM fields. Her writing style is scrupulous, often featuring interviews with top-tier scientists and health experts from various institutions. ... Read More

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