Fire at Sircilla Medical College hostel sparks safety concerns
Telangana- A fire broke out in a temporary girls' hostel at a government medical college in the Rajanna Sircilla district, Telangana, on Wednesday. While no injuries were reported, the clothes and belongings of two students were destroyed in the flames.
Following the incident, junior doctors demanded immediate fire safety audits across all newly established medical colleges and urged the government to arrange for better temporary accommodation until permanent hostel buildings are constructed.
The incident also raised concerns over security and infrastructure standards, drawing criticism from the Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T-JUDA) and the Healthcare Reform Doctors Association (HRDA).
The association alleged that the college management was attempting to blame the students for the incident, claiming that the fire was caused by a lamp, whereas indications pointed to a short circuit near an electrical socket.
The T-JUDA President, Dr G Vikram, and Secretary, Dr N Chandrakant Reddy, further alleged that students are being pressured to support the official side. They were warned of disciplinary action against them if they failed to do so.
The associations also highlighted the issue of overcrowding in the rented hostel buildings. They alleged that 10 to 15 students were residing in a single room. They claimed that, due to a shortage of space, some first-year students were being accommodated in the mess hall by creating partitions.
According to the associations, approximately 200 students across three batches were currently residing in temporary hostels, leaving no accommodation available for the incoming batch.
Meanwhile, speaking to DC, College Principal Rajeshwari stated that the staff took immediate action as soon as smoke began billowing from one of the rooms. The two students living in the room had locked it before leaving for class.
“As soon as we learned that smoke was emitting from a hostel room, we immediately alerted the college staff, who rushed to the spot and broke the lock of the room to put out the fire.
Meanwhile, the fire station was alerted, and an engine reached in time to assist,” she said.
Furthermore, the Principal stated that there is no permanent hostel building for the medical college, and students are being accommodated in the available rooms.
“The government-allotted hostel building construction is going on at a snail's pace. On a number of occasions, we requested the contractor to complete the works at the earliest, but in vain,” she said.
