NAMAKKAL/SALEM: Opposing the proposed move to allow private veterinary colleges in Tamil Nadu, students of the Government Veterinary College in Namakkal and Salem staged a sit-in protest, on Friday. Around 350 students of the college in Namakkal participated in the protest.
The Government Veterinary College and Research Institute in Namakkal offers undergraduate and postgraduate courses and attracts students from across the state.
Meanwhile, over 100 students of the Government Veterinary College and Research Institute at Thalaivasal in Salem district also held a protest, expressing their opposition to the proposal.
The students said Tamil Nadu has one of the strongest veterinary education systems in the country through the Tamil Nadu Veterinary and Animal Sciences University (TANUVAS), and allowing private veterinary colleges could affect the quality of veterinary education and employment opportunities.
According to the protesting students, there are currently seven veterinary colleges in Tamil Nadu producing around 680 graduates every year. More than 8,000 veterinarians are already registered in the state, while graduates from private veterinary colleges in other states also come to Tamil Nadu in search of jobs. They said this has already led to increasing unemployment among veterinary graduates even though the state currently requires only around 5,000 veterinarians.
The students also expressed concern that maintaining the required standards of veterinary education, which includes teaching hospitals, livestock farms, laboratories and clinical training facilities, may be difficult in private institutions.
The protesters urged the state government to reconsider the proposal, prepare a scientific veterinary manpower planning policy and strengthen government veterinary infrastructure by upgrading sub-centres into full-fledged veterinary hospitals.
The Tamil Nadu Veterinary Graduates Federation has also appealed to the state government to reconsider the move, the co-ordinator of the association said.