Kathmandu, January 27:

Demanding that their children be allowed to undertake pre-internship in Nepal, parents of students studying MBBS in China staged a sit-in on the premises of the Ministry of Health and Population (MoHP) today.

The government had, on August 9, 2007, decided to stop providing ‘pre-internship’ in government hospitals.

The parents said the decision has affected the career of hundreds of students MBBS final year students. Pushpa Ratna Shakya, coordinator of the Parents Group, said the government should allow students who are currently pursuing MBBS degree in China for internship in Nepali hospitals. “It is more practicable for students to undertake internship in Nepal. This is beneficial for the government as well as the people,” he claimed.

Agitating parents said medical cases in Nepal and China are different. “If our children do internship here in Nepal, they will become better doctors as they will be familiar with medical cases here,” Shakya said.