Row over ‘unapproved’ neuroscience course

The Hindu: Palakkad: Wednesday, 24 February 2016.

A self-financing diploma course in Neuro Technology started by the Palakkad-based Mahatma Gandhi Educational Society at a cooperative hospital with an initial intake of 27 students has courted controversy with the Directorate of Medical Education (DME) saying that it had not approved the course. The stand of the directorate is in contradiction with the claim of the society that it was provided with a No Objection Certificate (NOC) by the same agency on September 3, 2015 to start the paramedical course. On January 4, Deepa Devi, Senior Superintendent (paramedical wing) of DME and State Public Information Officer of the directorate, gave an RTI reply to P.K. Rinto of Thrissur saying that the directorate had not conducted any inspection at the cooperative hospital and no approval had been given to its course.

Replying to another RTI question from V.B. Anjumol of Kallara near Kottayam on February 6, the officer repeated the same and said the course was being conducted without the department’s consent or approval. Meanwhile, society officials claimed that the course was conducted based on an NOC from the directorate.

“The Medical Education Directorate had earlier found that the hospital has facilities only to train two students in the course per year. Based on that finding, the directorate had refused to provide its approval to the course. Each student will have to pay Rs. 40,000 per year as tuition fee for the two-year course. The society is not informing the students that the course has no approval,’’ says Mr. Rinto, an office-bearer of the State level association of qualified neuro technicians.

According to him, only the Palakkad hospital is training 27 students in a batch and that too under self- financing mode.

“The Pariyaram Medical College has just two seats for the course while Kozhikode medical college has six seats. Thrissur Lourde Hospital has six seats while Alappuzha Medical college has four seats. Thiruvananthapuram medical college has eight seats while Kottayam Medical college has two seats,’’ he said. Though it is mandatory that each centre requires at least two lecturers and one technician, Palakkad hospital has only one qualified technician who conducts both theory and practical sessions.