Medicos seek suspension of classes

KOTA: Students of Government Medical College (GMCK) in Kota held demonstrations on Thursday to demand suspension of their classes in view of outbreak of novel coronavirus even as the state government closed all educational institutions in the state.

The Rajasthan government had earlier declared closure of schools, coaching institutes, colleges and gyms to prevent spread of Covid-19 but medical colleges have not suspended classes yet.

Undergraduate students of the Kota medical college held demonstrations on the college campus to demand suspension of their classes in view of their vulnerability to Covid-19.

“The government imposed prohibitory orders [under section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code] in the state but around 250 undergraduate students in GMCK are attending classes,” said Sushil Kudi, GMCK students’ union president.

He said recently a student from Dubai attended classes in the college, which makes other students susceptible to contacting the disease, because she was not identified initially. Ashok Panwar, a first year MBBS student and class representative, said that a large number of students are gathering in a class for studies amid Covid-19 outbreak so the government should suspend classes.

GMCK principal Dr Vijay Sardana said that there were no orders from the state government for suspension of classes.

Meanwhile, all engineering colleges in the state under the Rajasthan Technical University of Kota are closed.