Punjab Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on Monday discussed the issue of shifting of the students of Chintpurni Medical College to other institutions with his council of ministers.Taking up the issue after conclusion of the day’s cabinet meeting agenda, the Chief Minister said his government was committed to protecting the careers of the students affected by closure of Chintpurni Medical College in Pathankot. The government will not allow their future to be jeopardised, he said.The meeting was informed that of the 250 students studying in the college’s MBBS course, 100 were from the 2014 batch and the remaining 150 students from the 2016 batch. The cabinet agreed that all these students should be shifted to other medical colleges in the state as soon as the approval of the Medical Council of India and Ministry of Health, Government of India, for this is received.
The Chief Minister had given a personal assurance to affected students who met him in Pathankot last month that the shifting process would be initiated without delay as soon as the approval comes through. He had assured the students that his government would do everything to safeguard their careers, and if need be, separate exams would be held in case the MCI approval does not come through before the examinations begin in November.The college owned by BJP’s Swaran Singh Salaria, had failed to meet the standards set by MCI, as a result of which the Punjab & Haryana High Court had directed the state government to relocate the students. Subsequently, the state government wrote to the MCI and the Union Health Ministry for permission to shift the students to other colleges.