Nursing students in Varanasi protest management issues, call it off after talks

Nursing students of a private hospital staged a brief protest on a city road here on Tuesday, alleging harassment by the institutions management, but later called it off after intervention by the administration, officials said.

Nursing students of a private hospital staged a brief protest on a city road here on Tuesday, alleging harassment by the institution's management, but later called it off after intervention by the administration, officials said. The students of Upkar Nursing Home sat on a dharna on the Sundarpur-Lanka road after returning from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's programme in the city. The students alleged that they had been taken to attend the event and were called to the hospital premises around 1 pm, but were transported to the venue at Bareka ground only around 4 pm. They further claimed that while returning, they were dropped midway and had to walk in extreme heat, due to which several students felt dizzy and some collapsed on the way. Upset over the incident and what they described as poor management, the students staged a protest on the road, alleging that they had been facing issues with the administration for some time. Deputy Commissioner of Police Gaurav Banswal said information was received in the evening about the protest by nursing students outside the hospital. ''An administrative team reached the spot and spoke to the students. It emerged that they were unhappy over issues such as excessive fines and difficult working conditions,'' he said. He added that parents of the students also complained that the management was not addressing their concerns. The officer clarified that some social media reports linking the protest to alleged mismanagement during the prime minister's event were incorrect. The protest was called off after officials counselled the students, he added.