Students of Nepal Ayurveda Medical College in Birgunj have been suffering due to lack of proper infrastructure of the college. Nepal Ayurveda Medical college is affiliated with Tribhuvan University, recognized by Ayurveda Medical Council and is offering Bachelors of Ayurveda Medical Sciences and Surgery (BAMS) course. Currently 51 students are pursuing their course in this college.
According to students, the college does not have adequate teaching staff, classrooms, and other basic equipment for practical classes, among other things. The college does not even have its own building and a hospital.
Despite the requirement of at least 15 teachers for the course, the college is making do with only four teachers, including part-timers. The college infrastructure is no different than that of a village school, students lamented.
A total of 17 and 22 students were enrolled in the first and second batches respectively, while the latest batch has only nine students. There is dispute among board members regarding the re-location of the college in Kathmandu Valley, that might be the reason for their apathy to improve infrastructure in Birgunj. Hospital Board Committee Chair Pradip Shumsher, however, said there was no point in further investing in the college unless it was shifted to Kathmandu.
“Students had also written to Tribhuvan University Institute of Medicine (TU-IOM), Ayurveda Medical Council, and the district administration office informing them about the sorry state of the college, but to no avail.
Meanwhile, the academic director of the college Dr Devesh Chandra Pathak claimed the college had been maintaining good academic standards.
“We may lack good infrastructure due to fund crunch, but the academic part is going on well,” he argued, claiming the college is yet to collect about Rs 18.7 million in dues from students. Pathak, however, said the college will soon construct its own building on a plot of land in Birgunj.
