'Make Medical college operational by 2010'

Puducherry, Nov 18: Strongly opposing the move of the territorial administration to hand over the government medical college building to the ESI Corporation, AIADMK state secretary and MLA Anbazhagan on Tuesday, Nov 18 sought the intervention of Lt Governor Govind Singh Gurjar for an early completion of the building.

In a memorandum submitted to Mr Gurjar, a copy of which was made available to the media, Mr Anbazhagan said the building should be utilised only for Government Medical College and should get operational from 2009-10 academic year.

The AIADMK leader gave a detailed background of the efforts of the previous government headed by N Rangasamy to start the medical college and the subsequent decision to defer it citing financial crisis and also the decision taken by the new Vaithilingam government to hand over the building to the ESI Corproation to start its medical college.

The students of Puducherry would be deprived of 50 per cent of seats if the ESI Corporation runs the medical college, he said adding the government will have no control over the college and if the college was handed over to the ESIC, it will become another institution like JIPMER here.

He claimed that those who gave the land for the college were also opposing the handing over of the building now.

Mr Anbazhagan urged the Lt Governor to constitute a committee of legislators and officials to study the feasibility of establishing the college at the same site with reduced expenses and to ensure that no hasty decision was taken by the present council of ministers in this regard.

UNI