BENGALURU: Allied Health Science students of Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute (BMCRI) staged a protest on the college campus on Wednesday, demanding payment of stipends during their compulsory internship year and highlighting long-standing issues related to infrastructure and teaching staff shortages.
The students, pursuing BSc AHS under Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS), said their four-year course includes a mandatory one-year internship that is required to be paid. However, unlike MBBS and postgraduate medical students, AHS interns have not been receiving any stipend, despite working in government hospitals, including Victoria.
Students said the issue has been raised by successive batches for over five to six years. They submitted representations to college authorities, administrative departments and the government, but received no concrete response.
“We tried approaching the authorities and through written appeals, but nothing worked. That is why we were forced to protest,” a student said.
The students also alleged that they were threatened with suspension, cancellation of exam.