The government has formed 22 committees to assess the quality of education and detect the irregularities at private medical and dental colleges in the country.
The committees have been formed as allegations are galore that the private medical colleges have become tools of money-making for some entrepreneurs.
Sources said a good number of leading business houses opened medical colleges where there was no quality education except making money.
They cautioned that it might spell a disaster for the heath sector in the long run, as there would be a dearth of quality doctors.
Following the allegations made by health experts, common people and students, the government formed the 22 committees that would assess performance, quality of education and irregularities at those private medical colleges.
A source in the health ministry said: "We do not want the innocent students to be victimised by the profit mongers who just fleece the students."
Additional health secretary Ayubur Rahman Khan said: "We have formed 22 committees which is a big number for any particular sector."
He said within a month all the committees would submit their reports to the ministry.
Mr. Khan said: "On receipt of the reports we'll sit with the minister concerned and assess the quality of education and detect the loopholes and irregularities of the college authorities and owners."
He said out of 22 committees, four would work on the newly-approved 13 private medical colleges and the remaining eighteen would assess the 54 medical and dental colleges already functioning.
According to the notice issued by the health ministry, the committees were formed comprising representatives from the government, medical universities and other departments.
A senior professor at the Bangabandhu Sheik Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) said the private medical and dental college authorities and owners were just cheating the innocent students.
He said as per government rules every college must have a 250-bed hospital.
But, "in practice if you visit the colleges, you will see many of them have no hospital there and even those that have beds do not have patients on all the beds."
The BSMMU professor, however, said the government's committee formation would give some officials and other people a good opportunity to make money.
He said frustratingly the whole process of assessment and reporting on the colleges would provide an opportunity of bribing.
But Mr. Khan, the additional health secretary, said the government had halted activities of the newly-approved 13 private medical colleges.
He also said out of the 22 committees, four would work on the 13 colleges and they would assess the colleges' papers and physical infrastructure.
The government was concerned about the colleges' performance, quality of education and violation of rules, he added.
The additional secretary also said: "If the committees find irregularities on a large scale at any of the colleges, we may cancel their registration or they may face penalty."
© 2024 - All Rights with The Financial Express
