Kathmandu, February 7:

Students who pursued their MBBS degree in China and are vying for internship in hospitals here today locked up president of the Nepal Medical Association and the seven members of the Nepal Medical Council (NMC) in the council’s office at Bansbari for more than four hours.

“The NMC members have come up rules barring the students from pursuing internship at the Bir Hospital,” said one of the agitated student. Altogether 128 MBBS students had appeared in the examination for the 68 internship seats at the Bir Hospital and those who could not make through the exam today locked up the members.

“As per the rule, the hospital can take interns at 7:1 ratio, interns and the number of beds in the hospital. Those who could not make through the tests for internship were agitated and demand change in the rules,” Dr Shrawan Kumar Chaudhary, director of the Bir Hospital said.

Dr Chaudhary said the hospital has forwarded the students’ demand to the council.

Dr Shashi Sharma, member of NMC who was also locked up in the building said, “The council is not authorised to amend the law. The rule of 7:1 ratio of beds to interns is an international standard and is followed in all hospitals.”

However, we have assured the students that we would take up the issue to the Ministry of Education and Sports, and Ministry of Health and Population, Sharma said. Dr Hemang Dixit said they have asked the students to wait until there are vacant seats in the Bir Hospital or pursue internship in hospitals.

Meanwhile, the parents of MBBS students studying in China today submitted a memorandum to Nepal Human Rights Commission demanding their children to be allowed to undertake pre-internship in the government hospitals.