Guwahati: The stand-off at the three government homoeopathy colleges in Assam continued on Tuesday with the students keeping the colleges shut for the fourth consecutive day in support of their demands and protesting against police lathicharge here.
The students on Saturday locked the gates of the colleges and have not been attending classes. Instead, wearing uniforms, they have been holding sit-ins in front of the colleges. “However, we have not disrupted the treatment of patients during the protest,” All Assam Homoeopathic Doctors’ Association general secretary Mafuzur Rahman said.
There are three homeopathic medical colleges in the state –
- JK Saikia Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital in Jorhat,
- Assam Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital in Nagaon a
- Swahid Jadav Nath Government Homoeopathic Medical College in Guwahati.
The protesters said every year around 250 students pass out of the three medical colleges to face an uncertain future as the state government does not appoint them in government health centres.
Assam health and education minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on February 28 had told the media that homoeopathic doctors are not appointed in health centres because of lack of demand from the people. Sarma’s remark was strongly criticised by the students of the colleges who were then protesting at Last Gate here in support of their demands.
“Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has showed his callous, lacklustre attitude by feigning ignorance and turning a blind eye towards the genuine issues and plight of the homoeopathy doctors,” Rahman said.
