Students attend their first class at Patna AIIMS on Thursday. Picture by Deepak Kumar

Eighty medical students got a few lessons on life on their first day in Patna AIIMS, as the institution director tried to baptise them on how to be nice human beings by being good doctors.

MBBS students of the second batch of Jaiprakash Narayan All India Institute of Medical Sciences (JPNAIIMS) were bubbling with joy on Thursday as they attended their first class conducted by director G.K. Singh.

To everybody’s surprise, Singh chose not to speak about rules and regulations of the institution, which is unusual on the first day.

Singh rather gave a motivational speech briefing on how to augment mental strength and how one can be sensitive towards people. Not surprisingly, students were clean-bowled by the nice gesture of their “sir”.

Vanshika Thukral from Delhi, a student of the new batch, said the inaugural lecture was simply “awesome”.

“Sir told us we should be responsive towards people because the profession we have chosen demands sensitivity. I liked the thought. Instead of telling us about rules and regulations of the institution, he shared with us some facts about life and made the first day memorable,” Vanshika said.

She added that students of the new batch are extremely proud of getting admission in Patna AIIMS.

“I would have studied in St Stephen’s College, Delhi, if I would have not got admission in JPNAIIMS. There is no denying that St Stephen’s is a reputable institution but it can’t match the standards of an AIIMS where I am studying now. When I told my relatives, neighbours and friends that I have got admission in AIIMS, they started pampering me,” added the 20-year-old.

Not only Vanshika, other students, too, were impressed with the director’s way of flagging off a new session.

Rajasthan resident Vineet Tanwar felt like a doctor from day one after listening to the director’s inaugural speech.

“I am feeling like a doctor after attending the first class conducted by G.K. Singh. He said we have to learn how to de-stress considering the difficult profession we are in. I think every doctor should know the nuances of the trade,” Vineet said.

On what was the reaction of his friends and relatives when he told them about his admission, Tanwar said: “I was surprised to receive greetings even from enemies. The person who sent a warm greeting was my relative with whom we are in a dispute for the past few months. But when he got to know about my admission, he resolved the dispute on his own. A surprising turn of event though it made me realise the value of AIIMS.”

Sourav Singh from Bihar believes it is the blend of tradition and culture that give AIIMS its due respect. “My batch is culturally very rich. There are 10-15 students from Uttar Pradesh, 10 are from Kerala. There are also students from Rajasthan and Jharkhand. Apart from a good degree, I am also here sharing room with some of the best brains in the world,” Singh said.

The first batch of BSc nursing course of JPNAIIMS also started on Thursday. Singh jointly conducted the first class of BSc nursing and the second batch of MBBS. Singh said 67 teachers have been recruited against 305 posts.