Jaipur: In a bid to curb ragging and ensure the safety of newcomers, Maharana Pratap Govt Medical College in Pali has adopted an unconventional approach by sending its senior students on 15-day leave, barring them from campus access as a fresh MBBS batch has joined.The decision is based on an incident of misconduct from 2022, which prompted the college management to suspend several senior students involved. The delayed response — coming nearly four years after the incident — can be attributed to the arrival of a new principal at the medical college around two months ago.As part of the initiative preceding the arrival of the 2026-27 MBBS batch, the medical college has mandated that classes for students from the batches of 2022-23 through 2025-26 will remain suspended from Sept 28 to Oct 12. Senior students residing in hostels have been instructed to vacate their accommodations and are prohibited from entering college premises, including reading rooms and libraries, during this timeframe.Medical college principal Dr OP Suthar said, “The decision is in line with directions issued by Supreme Court, University Grants Commission and National Medical Commission. It is not a decision which has been taken on our own.”He emphasised the importance of creating a comfortable environment for new students to acclimate without “discomfort or pressure.”While senior students are barred from physical attendance on campus, they are directed to attend theory classes online and report to the hospital as required by their medical course. However, due to the restrictions on hostel access, many students are opting for rented accommodations in the area.The preventive measure comes in light of a serious misconduct case from 2022, where 48 students, including 14 from the 2018 batch, 25 from the 2019 batch, and nine from the 2020 batch, faced suspension for 21 days and were expelled from hostels for a period of time following an inquiry into their actions.
