The Assam government on Tuesday decided to rename Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital as Barpeta Medical College and Hospital.
Speaking at a press conference after the state cabinet meeting that approved the decision, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that most of the government medical colleges in the state are named after the places where they are located.
“All our medical colleges are named according to their location. We see this in Guwahati, Dhubri, Silchar, Bongaigaon, Biswanath and Sonitpur medical colleges. Somehow the Barpeta one has been named as Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital, which is not in line with the naming pattern of other medical colleges,” he said.
Sarma said the cabinet decided to rename the institution to avoid confusion.
“Because of the name, many people are asking whether it is a private medical college. Hence, today the cabinet has decided to change the name to Barpeta Medical College and Hospital,” he said.
Sarma said the government would name another institution after former president Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed in recognition of his stature.
“Since Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed was the President of India and the first from Assam, the Cabinet has decided that another educational or cultural institution of equal or higher status will be named after him. In this regard, we will take a decision to keep his name alive,” he added.
Established in 2011, the Faculty of Medicine is affiliated to Srimanta Sankardeva University of Health Sciences and has offered undergraduate courses since 2012 and postgraduate medical education since 2019.
Who was Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed?
Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the fifth President of India from 1974 until his death in 1977. He was the second Muslim to hold the office and the second Indian President to die in office.
Born in Old Delhi, Ahmed was the son of an Assamese army doctor. He was educated at St. Stephen’s College, Delhi and later St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, where he qualified as a barrister.
All our medical schools are named after their location. Somehow the Barpeta one was named as Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital which is not in line with the naming pattern of other medical colleges.
Ahmed joined the Congress Party in 1931 and was imprisoned during the Quit India Movement in 1942. Before his presidency, he served as a Union Minister under Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, holding the portfolios of Food and Agriculture, Education and Industrial Development.
