Ambernath medical college struggles with staffing shortage, relies on retired professors | Mumbai news
Thane: Despite starting its first MBBS course with 100 students in October last year, Ambernath’s newly established government medical college continues to operate without essential facilities. The Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) has not yet completed the hiring process for faculty, leaving the medical education department to depend on retired professors for contractual roles. However, the response to recruitment advertisements has been poor, as most retired faculty members are unwilling to travel to Ambernath.
“We began the first-year MBBS course with only two professors each for physiology, anatomy, and biochemistry. With the second year set to begin soon, we urgently require more teaching staff,” said Dr Santosh Verma, dean of Ambernath Medical College. The college has sought the immediate hiring of five professors, 14 associate professors, 21 assistant professors, and 33 senior residents.
The state government has offered a monthly salary of ₹1.85 lakh for professors and ₹1.15 lakh for associate professors. However, sources indicate that the remuneration is not competitive enough, especially considering the reluctance of faculty members to commute to Ambernath.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the medical college and a proposed 500-bed hospital was held last year on an eight-hectare plot. However, construction has not commenced due to a legal dispute. A local association, Shetki Sanstha, has challenged the land allotment in the Bombay High Court, further delaying the project.
As a temporary arrangement, classes are being conducted in a rented dental college building in Jambulgaon. The college does not have laboratories, lecture halls, or medical instruments, making it difficult for students to receive proper training.
According to National Medical Council (NMC) regulations, every medical college must be attached to a hospital. However, Ambernath Medical College currently lacks one. To address this, the state government has proposed attaching four existing hospitals—the 30-bed Badlapur Medical Centre (planned to be upgraded to 50 beds), Ambarnath Rural Hospital, and Ulhasnagar Government Hospitals 3 and 4. However, all these hospitals have minimal facilities and are located far from both the college and student hostels.
A former medical education secretary expressed concerns, stating, “NMC guidelines require an attached hospital to be within a two-kilometre radius of the medical college. In this case, the hospitals are scattered across different suburbs, making it difficult for students to receive practical training. Additionally, there is neither sufficient teaching staff nor the basic infrastructure required for a medical college.”
With no dedicated campus, students are being accommodated in 10 unused buildings constructed under the government’s Basic Services for Urban Poor (BSUP) scheme in 2017. Last year, an inspection by an HT team revealed that the buildings were in poor condition, with leaking roofs, broken window panes, and disconnected electrical wiring. The surrounding area is overgrown with vegetation, and transport connectivity is another major challenge. A source said the situation still persists. The minimum rickshaw fare from Badlapur railway station to the hostel is ₹60, adding to the students’ daily commuting expenses.
Medical Education Commissioner Rajiv Nivatkar stated, “We have sent our requisition to MPSC and are also hiring contractual staff to fill the gaps.” However, experts say that temporary staffing solutions cannot address the core issues of the college’s lack of infrastructure and an attached hospital.
