GTA team meets Darjeeling DM and SP, enquire about action taken on alleged fraud by Asha Paramedical Institute

DARJEELING, : A team of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) today met the Darjeeling SP and Darjeeling district magistrate and enquired about the action being taken on the alleged fraud by Asha Paramedical and Nursing Institute (APNI) of Salbari, Siliguri,

Allegations of being misled about the nature, duration and recognition of the skill-based courses they had enrolled in are being levelled against the institute by its students among whom many are from the Hills here and the State of Sikkim.

“In the meeting with the district administration in Darjeeling today, we inquired about the action being taken on the letter of the GTA chief Anit Thapa. The letter was addressed to the West Bengal Health and Family Welfare Department secretary appealing for an inquiry against the guilty institution and justice for the students,” said the GTA Sabha deputy chairman Rajesh Chauhan.

According to him, in the letter dated February 9, the day the students raised their voice regarding against the institute, the GTA chief had appealed for an inquiry into the incident. He also maintained that Thapa had instructed Darjeeling CMOH to register an FIR against the organization which had also been done the same day. Chauhan said that today they also enquired about the status of the FIR with the Darjeeling SP.

In the letter, Thapa stated that the students had claimed that they were admitted to a recognized paramedical nursing programme but later discovered that the institute was registered only as a vocational training centre.

“This has raised serious doubts about the validity of their certificates and their future job prospects. Many of these students are from economically weaker sections and have invested their hard-earned money and time in the course, and their future hangs in the balance. I urge your office to investigate this matter and take immediate action to verify the institute's claims and accreditation,” Thapa wrote in the letter.

On the other hand, Chauhan informed that police have sealed the Darjeeling branch of the Institute here. "The GTA is doing what it can within its sphere of influence and management. Rather than going to meet the students, we have given priority to their cases and done administrative work. Now the case has been registered in the court and the person concerned has been taken into custody by the police.”

The Sikkim government has also flagged serious concerns over the incident and has also met the Siliguri police commissioner recently seeking justice for the affected students.