Avoid aggression and violence towards agitating students of Sardar Raja Medical College

Dear Honorable Chief Minister Mr. Patnaik,

The students’ strike of Sardar Raja Medical College, Jaring has entered second week. However, it has come to the notice from various newspaper (Sambad, Sambalpur edition, Aug 7, 2015) and local people that Sardar Raja Medical College management and administration has threatened the agitating students for violence action. The campus has been sensitively in tense since past 24 hours and local public in Kalahandi has strongly come out in genuine support of students.

Public from Bhawanipatna, Dharamgarh, Jungarh, Kesinga and other places in Kalahandi have come in support of the students in the last week. All political parties in Kalahandi have also come strongly in support of the strike. The issue has been no more limited future of the agitating students only, it has become part of tertiary health facilities and hospital infrastructure in Kalahandi for the general people, who are forced to depend on Visakhapatnam for any major health problem.

The issue and infrastructure problems in Sardar Raja Medical College are well known fact to whole state since past 11 years. WODC and Odisha Govt. should have taken the project back five years ago when failures of Selvam Educational Trust were very well exposed to public, state Govt. and local administration. State Govt. and WODC were very late in taking appropriate action in right time.

So far, the strike for last two weeks has been very peaceful without any violence and damage to public property. The whole state is watching the development very closely. It will be very unwise and undemocratic if college management used violence against the peaceful demonstration of the students. Such action will rather bring and generate more public anger in the region and potentially could disrupt law and order situation in the region.

To keep the peaceful law and order in the region, I request you to kindly monitor the situation sensitively and personally by not allowing any violence action and aggression by the Sardar Raja Medical College Management and/or district administration towards agitating students and public for the cause of Sardar Raja Medical College.

Instead of further aggravating public anger towards the administration and state Govt., it will be wise to resolve the issue peacefully as soon as possible by either converting this college to a Health University or fully state Govt. medical college and hospital.

Thank you and best regards,

Digambara