MCI ignored college’s faults

The Medical Council of India (MCI) under its president Ketan Desai had charged the Patiala-based Gian Sagar Medical College & Hospital with inadequacies that it had ignored for at least three years, documents show.

The Medical Council of India (MCI) under its president Ketan Desai had charged the Patiala-based Gian Sagar Medical College & Hospital with inadequacies that it had ignored for at least three years, documents show.

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A city court on Saturday denied bail to Desai, accused of demanding bribe for granting annual recognition to the Gian Sagar Medical College.

The grounds cited by MCI inspection committee to withhold recognition may be valid, but the council seems to have woken up too late.

The college that started in 2007 was getting its annual renewal every year post the MCI’s inspections and approval by its executive panel. Last year, according to the MCI report dated January 21 and 22, 2009, the institution was given the go-ahead to admit its 3rd batch.

However, according to the minutes of the MCI’s executive panel meeting in February this year, the college was denied approval on grounds such as no air-conditioning in the central library, 250 seats in the auditorium instead of 500 and less information on the website.

The report that is available on the MCI’s website cites other faults such as lack of proper common rooms and central research laboratory and a Medical Records Officer.

“These faults are laughable and would obviously have been present the last year as well. How come the MCI found them now after it gave them recognition last year?” said Dr Kunal Saha, a US-based physician whose Kolkata-based NGO intervened alongwith the CBI in the Desai case.

One of the other fallacies pointed out was that the college had three mobile and static units against the mandatory five.