Academic activities stalled for over a month amid protests

Academic activities at the Government Unani and Ayurvedic Medical College in Mirpur have remained halted for the past one and a half months due to an ongoing student protest demanding a separate law and the formation of an independent council to oversee their affairs.

Student admissions to its two undergraduate courses -- Bachelor of Unani Medicine and Surgery (BUMS) and Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) -- have also been on hold for one and a half months, putting the academic future of 50 students in uncertainty.

Each year, the college admits 25 students to each programme.

To resolve the crisis, the health ministry has drafted the Bangladesh Unani and Ayurvedic Medical Education Act-2025, which proposes forming an independent council.

However, students say the draft contains controversial provisions and lacks clarity.

On Monday night, students brought out a procession after the Medical Education and Family Welfare Division uploaded the draft to its website earlier in the day. The division has called a meeting on the draft for Thursday.

"All academic and administrative activities have remained suspended amid the protest," acting principal Rashiduzzaman Khan told The Daily Star yesterday.

July 13 was the last date for admissions, but the process could not be completed, he said, adding that students and teachers have some complaints about the draft, which they are supposed to submit in writing.

Students have been protesting since July 1, staging demonstrations at various locations, including the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), the Directorate General of Medical Education (DGME), the Jatiya Press Club, and their campus.

They said the college, established in 1989, still lacks a specific law or permanent council. Since 1996, they have been under an ad hoc council led by the DGHS director general, with a decision pending to form a permanent council similar to the Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council.

Like the MBBS programme, their degrees span six years, including a one-year internship. They have long sought a law and council to match the structure and status of their education.

Jubair Islam Mission, a fourth-year student, said the draft act has some controversial provisions, like allowing any UGC-approved university, including private ones, to confer their degrees, unlike MBBS and BDS degrees, which only public universities can award.

He warned this could lead to fake doctors and "certificate business." He also said the draft is unclear on whether graduates can use the title "Doctor."

Prof Rubina Yasmin, additional director general (medical education) at the DGME, said the students' demands are acknowledged, but enacting a law takes time.

"They have halted academic activities and even the admission process. We have nothing to do now… They will have to face the consequences," she said.