Telangana’s new medical colleges rocked by student agitations over lack of infrastructure

Students at several newly set-up government medical colleges in Telangana, including Jagtial, Mulugu, Narayanpet and Maheshwaram, are protesting over inadequate infrastructure, with hostels, lecture halls, laboratories and transport falling short of NMC norms. Student bodies and parents have sought time-bound written commitments from the state health department, KNRUHS and the NMC.

Hyderabad: A wave of student protests and agitations is sweeping across several newly established government medical colleges in Telangana, as the State health department struggles to create enough infrastructure commensurate with the rapid expansion of medical seats.

Jagtial and Mulugu: Mattresses on floors and overcrowded hostels

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At Government Medical College (GMC) in Jagtial, students launched indefinite protests demanding immediate compliance with minimum standards required by the National Medical Commission (NMC). Several student bodies and medical federations, including FAIMA (Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), pointed out that the absence of proper lecture halls, equipped laboratories, and permanent hostel buildings has severely compromised medical training.

Similarly, at GMC Mulugu, the arrival of new batches exposed an acute space shortage. Male students were temporarily squeezed into administrative blocks, and incoming batches were forced to sleep on mattresses spread across floors due to a severe shortage of cots and beds. Poor sanitation and irregular mess facilities have forced students to pool their own resources to manage basic hygiene before hospital management stepped in to rope-in daily wage workers for maintenance.

Narayanpet: Cramped Private Quarters

A similar crisis grips GMC Narayanpet, where the lack of a permanent hostel building has forced authorities to pack students into makeshift rooms within a private hospital structure. With approximately 10 students crammed into single rooms that lack proper washroom facilities, basic health and student welfare standards are heavily compromised, students said.

Maheshwaram GMC: Rented Premises and Ongoing Protests

Operating out of temporary rented premises at Mangalpally in Ibrahimpatnam, MBBS students and parents recently renewed indefinite protests, citing unfulfilled promises of relocation. The college continues to function from private campus buildings while students face massive logistical and sanitary strains.

Students have said that the institution lacks official hostels, forcing them to pay high rents for private accommodations. Female students have raised the alarm over severe safety risks, including a lack of perimeter compound walls, unlit approach roads, and recurring security vulnerabilities. Students are forced to travel 40 kilometres daily between the campus and their teaching hospital i.e. Vanasthalipuram Area Hospital, without dedicated college transport.

A Systemic Regulatory Gap

Medical student bodies and parents have sharply criticized the state authorities and the health departments for the present state-of-affairs in newly launched medical colleges. Student representatives have demanded immediate, time-bound written commitments from the state health department, KNRUHS (Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences (KNRUHS)), and NMC to audit facilities, guarantee basic living standards, and expedite the completion of permanent campuses.