Unauthorized paramedical institute sealed in TN, principal arrested

Chennai: A private paramedical institute functioning without valid approval and affiliation was sealed by the district administration recently . The administration also arrested its principal on charges of harassment, assault and cheating girl students following a complaint from a student's group on Friday.

The Principal, Sathya institute of paramedical sciences Sankarapuram, identified as K Sathya,29 also had her husband P Kalaimani, 38 working alongside her as correspondent of the college, who has been absconding ever since he was told of the police to have lodged a case against him.

According to the police, the district collector on Friday was submitted a petition by a section of the students, charging the Institute of forcing them to work as home nurses for the aged in Chennai. They alleged that they were forced to work as domestic maids and do menial work like cleaning toilets, at patient residences. They also claimed that though they charged those who were served by them, the authorities, however never made any payments to them.

The also blamed the principal and her correspondent husband of issuing threats to them when they refused to act as domestic help though employed on the pretext of home nurses and wanted to be employed in nursing homes and hospitals.They alleged that they were threatened that the school certificates deposited with the authorities would not be returned and they would also not be given their nursing certification.

They alleged that the institute correspondent and principal threatened them with dire consequences when they refused to work as domestic maids, though employed as home nurses and insisted on placement in nursing homes and hospitals.

They said the institute management threatened to withhold their school certificates and refused to provide diploma in nursing if they failed to comply with the orders of the institute.

Kalaimani and Sathya have been registered under Sections 294 (obscene acts and songs), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 352 (punishment for assault or criminal force otherwise than on grave provocation), 384 (punishment for extortion), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 506 (2) (punishment for criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 4 (penalty for harassment of women) of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act, 1998, with the sankarapuram police station following a directive from the district administration reports Times of India.

The institute operating for the past 8 years has been luring students on the pretext of a free course in nursing and finally pushing them into working as home nurses as part of their internship. Though offering several courses their nursing diploma is for a duration of two years.

To worsen the reputation of the college three female students of a private medical college of yoga and naturopathy were found dead under mysterious circumstances in a well near the college at Chinna Salem in the district, last year in January.

T Monisha from Chennai, V Priyanka from Tiruvarur district and E Saranya from Kancheepuram district were found dead in a well near the college under mysterious circumstances on January 23.

According to the police, the students took their lives to stage a protest against the management asking for an exorbitant fee.

However, the parents of the girls alleged the girls to have been murdered by the college management, reports TOI.