HYDERABAD: Students of Government Nizamia General Hospital on Tuesday vandalised the in-patient ward of the Government Ayurveda Hospital, which is housed in the same compound, and heckled the staff and the Duty Medical Officer (DMO). The hospital staff said that over 200 PG students from the Unani college barged into the hospital at around 3:30 pm asking the patients and doctors to vacate the premises.
Recounting her harrowing experience, Dr Shobha Rani, DMO, said, “I had just finished my rounds, and was checking OPD patients when I heard a commotion outside. These students came in and locked all the doors from inside, tore up the case sheets, and threw the mattresses and beds into a corner. They threatened us saying that orders to vacate the premises had come from the vice-principal.”
However the superintendent, Dr S Rajamouli confirmed that the Director of the Department of Ayush had not issued any such directive. The Government Ayurveda Hospital was asked to be temporarily shifted to Erragadda by July 25, to carry out renovation works.
Sheikh Mohammad, a PG scholar from the Unani College said, “The students in our college are facing space crunch ever since Al Arif Unani Medical College and Research Centre’s licence was revoked and 100 students were shifted to our college. The Ayurveda department was supposed to vacate the premises by July 25. However, they have refused to vacate and have stayed put in our building. So we decided to do it ourselves,” he said.
The superintendent of the hospital in 2015 had written to the authorities about the interference of local MLA and AIMIM corporator, alleging the latter were not allowing the construction to start.