LALITPUR: Students of KIST Medical College today threatened to stage relay hunger strike if their demands were not fulfilled at the earliest.

The students have been staging a sit-in in front of the college administration for the past one week, bringing all administrative and academic activities to a halt. The students said the college administration has turned a deaf ear to their nine-point demand.

Around 600 medical students are taking part in the protest.

The students have accused the TU-affiliated college of charging exorbitant fees from students against the fee ceiling fixed by the Ministry of Education.

Rajib Neupane, one of the protesting students, said despite the ceiling of Rs 32 lakh fixed by the government for MBBS programme, the college has been charging up to Rs 55 lakh. “On top of this, it further charges extra fees from students under various titles,” he said.

The agitating students have also accused the college of not paying the monthly stipend at par with the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital.

“In TUTH, an MBBS intern gets Rs 11,090 per month, while we get only Rs 8,000,” he added.

The agitating students had organised a pen down strike on July 3.

Their demands include establishing playground and bigger library in the college, basic facilities to students and IMed registration to college students, among others.

Neupane said they will stage relay hunger strike if their demands are not addressed within a few days. “We have already notified Nepal Medical Council, the District Administration Office, security personnel and others regarding our protest,” he said.

The college administration, however, denied all charges and said students were halting all administrative and academic activities ‘to exercise power and politics’. - See more at: http://thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=KIST+Medical+College+students+threaten+to+launch+hunger+strike&NewsID=420503#sthash.gASZUOmj.dpuf