PANJIM: While the patients at Goa Medical College and Hospital (GMC) often complain about poor basic amenities, the medical students staying at the GMC hostel also face the same ordeal.
From problems of sanitation to poor quality food to inadequate drinking water, it’s a daily hassle. Further, the students are asked to pay for facilities like the gym, which is not available.
GMC, Asia’s first medical college, has several graduates and post-graduate medical students, from different parts of the country, studying and practicing here. Majority of the students, especially those from outside Goa, stay in the hostel, which is located just opposite GMC, the only medical college in the State.
With no proper quality food facility available in the hostel, the students use the canteen. However, the same has been shut for over a year now after the FDA found the facility operating in a highly unhygienic manner. The Health department has now decided to outsource the canteen from June 1. Currently, students, patients and visitors are using the same canteen.
“The canteen for students has now been closed for over a year as the kitchen was found to be in a very unhygienic state. The students and patients have to use the same canteen. The provision of separate canteens has now become necessary. Other than the canteen, cleanliness has also become an issue”, said student Esha Karwakar.
“The canteen problem has been there for a while now and the authorities have been saying that they will get it resolved. However, the same has not happened,” said student Kirti Kharangate.
The GMC administration said that the canteen has been shut because it is being outsourced and will start operational from June 1.
Kharangate, said that canteen is not just one issue that the students here are facing. The facilities at the hostel too are poor, with not even adequate water supply.
“There is no mess facility provided in the boys hostel and although there is one in the girls hostel, the quality of food prepared is really poor. Also there is no proper water supply in these hostels”, he said.
“We do not have a mess in the hostel and now that the canteen has also been shut for quite some time it becomes very difficult for us as we have to go out for food and it is actually very difficult to manage that with our studies,” he explains.
Drinking water has also become a worry for these students as water filters are not available everywhere, said R Lobo, who resides in the hoste.
Student Aadishree Kenkre informed that though the students are asked to pay gym fees, there is no such facility provided. “Students are paying the gym fee for years now,” she said.
“There are many other problems such as the garbage disposal system, repairing of the bathrooms, closing of building gates at night, access to television room and indoor sports room in the new hostel”, said student Samantha Pinto.
