Guntur: Student sunder the banner of All India Students’ Federation Guntur District Committee staged a protest at the Bhagat Singh statue in Kothapet here on Monday, demanding that the state government withdraw its decision to run ten medical colleges under the Public-Private Partnership model.

Speaking on the occasion, AISF State General Secretary Bandela Naser Ji said that the state government’s cabinet recently decided to run ten medical colleges under the PPP model, and this must be withdrawn immediately. Implementing the PPP model in medical colleges would deprive hundreds of meritorious students the chance of pursuing MBBS education.

He recalled that during the previous government’s tenure, the central government approved the construction of 17 medical colleges, and the then CM laid foundation stones for 14 of them.

Last academic year, colleges were already started in Rajahmundry, Eluru, Machilipatnam, Nandyal, and Vizianagaram districts. However, during Jagan Mohan Reddy’s regime, GO 107 and 108 were issued, dividing 50% of seats in new medical colleges into B and C categories, selling B-category seats for Rs 12 lakh and C-category seats for Rs 25 lakh.

He also recalled that Nara Lokesh, who is now the Education Minister in the coalition government, had assured students during his Yuvagalam Padayatra in his Mangalagiri constituency that if they came to power, GO 107 and 108 would be scrapped within 100 days, and all medical colleges would be run fully as government colleges. But after coming to power, the government has brought in the PPP model and is now handing over these colleges to corporates, he alleged.

AISF State Vice-President Phanindra, district leaders Gundu Shiva, Bandarapu Yashwanth, City Secretary Praneeth, and city leaders Ajay, Durga Prasad, Sai Ganesh, Pawan, Venky, and others participated in the protest.