Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Rupesh Verma, who is pursuing post-graduation in gynaecology and obstetrics from Government Gajra Raja Medical College, Gwalior said that he was a Hindi- medium student throughout his school life. When he joined MBBS, he could not understand a word of what was taught in the class. Once back in the hostel, he used to sit down with a dictionary to try and make sense of what he was taught. But that was not easy. He could not simply find the Hindi meaning of some terms.
“I want to thank from the depth of my heart the person who mooted the idea of teaching medicine through Hindi medium,” Rupesh told Free Press. The Union home minister Amit Shah is going to launch the MBBS course in Hindi for medical colleges in the state at a function at Motilal Nehru Stadium in the city on October 16.
Rupesh further said that as he had to spend more time than others in studying a particular topic, he soon fell behind his classmates. “I was categorised as a weak student,” he said. At the time, Rupesh said, he intensely wished that the course content was available in Hindi. “Though I have cleared MBBS, I am happy that my juniors will benefit by this decision,” he said.
Psychiatrist Dr Satyakant Trivedi says that he has come across many such students. “The point is that one is more comfortable working and studying in a language in which one thinks, one dreams and in which one has been interacting with people around since childhood,” he said.
“I know many bright students who abandoned the idea of pursuing MBBS only because they felt they would not be able to cope with teaching in the English language,” he said. Dr Trivedi explained that if one cannot express oneself well in a particular language, it lowers one’s productivity, self-esteem and confidence.
A senior professor at the Gandhi Medical College, however, said that it was not that the government was launching a full-fledged MBBS course in Hindi from October 16. “It is just a baby step, a small beginning,” he said. The doctor, who did not want to be quoted, said that what will change is that the teachers will start giving lectures in Hindi, too, instead of exclusively in English. Also, the students will have access to some basic books in Hindi.
