UGC slaps show cause notice on 18 medical colleges over non-compliance to anti-ragging regulations

New Delhi: Taking action against 18 medical colleges for failing to comply with Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has issued show cause notices to these institutions and asked them to submit a written explanation within seven days of receiving the notice. The commission also warned that strict action will be taken if these institutions fail to respond within time.

The Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, mandates that every student and their parents/guardians must submit an anti-ragging undertaking at the time of admission and the beginning of every academic year.

The notice, signed by UGC Secretary Prof. Manish R. Joshi specified the 18 medical colleges from various states. Among them, three medical colleges are from Andhra Pradesh, one from Assam, four from Bihar, one each from Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, and two from Puducherry and Tamil Nadu.

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The following list includes - Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam, Guntur Medical College in Andhra Pradesh, Kurnool Medical College, Andhra Pradesh, Lakhimpur Medical College, Assam, Nalanda Medical College and Hospital, Bihar, Government Medical College, Bettiah, Katihar Medical College, Bihar, Madhubani Medical College, Bihar.

Hamdard Institute of Medical Sciences & Research, New Delhi, Bundelkhand Medical College, Madhya Pradesh, Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education, Puducherry, Mahatma Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute, Puducherry, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Tamil Nadu, Christian Medical College, Tamil Nadu, Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences, Uttar Pradesh and Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education and Research, West Bengal.

These medical colleges have been slapped with show cause notices after UGC observed that they failed to submit an "anti-ragging declaration" list from their students and their guardians.

The notice issued by the commission on January 23 stated, "This is to bring to your immediate attention that it has been observed that your college has not complied with the mandatory requirements set forth in the Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009 for curbing the menace of ragging. Specifically, it has come to our notice that your institution has failed to obtain the anti-ragging undertakings from your students as required by the said regulations."

The Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, mandates that every student and their parents/guardians must submit an anti-ragging undertaking at the time of admission and at the beginning of every academic year.

"This undertaking is a crucial measure to prevent and deter any incidents of ragging within educational institutions. The failure to secure these undertakings not only constitutes non-compliance with the regulations but also puts the well-being and safety of the students at risk," reads the notice.

In the notice, the commission directed the 18 medical colleges to submit a written explanation within seven days from the receipt of the notice, detailing the reasons for their non-compliance and the corrective measures they intend to take.

Further, the UGC warned that failure to provide a satisfactory response will lead to further actions, including penalties and other corrective measures under the provisions of the Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009.

"In light of the above, you are hereby required to show cause as to why appropriate action should not be initiated against your institution for this non-compliance. You are directed to submit your written explanation within 7 days from the date of receipt of this notice, detailing the reasons for this lapse and the steps you intend to take to rectify this situation immediately. Failure to provide a satisfactory explanation within the stipulated time frame will compel us to proceed with further necessary actions as per the provisions of the Anti-Ragging Regulations, 2009, including but not limited to the imposition of penalties and other corrective measures," mentioned the notice.

Medical Dialogues had previously reported that in 2024, within weeks of the commencement of the 2024 academic year on October 14, the anti-ragging cell of the University Grants Commission (UGC) received more than 55 complaints from medical colleges across the country. This number was almost 42% of the total number of complaints received from all the colleges.

Even though there are only around 700 medical colleges in the country, comparatively much lesser than the number of engineering and technology colleges (8000), in 2024 alone, the anti-ragging cell received 800 From these instances of ragging in medical colleges, the victims in four of these cases took their own lives. complaints and among them, 222 were from medical colleges and 230 were from engineering and polytechnic colleges.

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