Berhampur, Nov. 10: BJD MLA Ramesh Chandra Chau Patnaik today opened an indoor facility at the government-run Biju Patnaik Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital here amidst student protest.

The 47-year-old hospital had no in-patient department and the students had go to the nearby City Hospital for their internship in the last year of the five-and-a-half-year bachelor of homoeopathic medicine and surgery course.

"Three medical officers and one staff nurse have been appointed in the indoor and the chief district medical officer and the MKCG Medical College and Hospital would help the students during their internship," said Patnaik.

The students are demanding immediate posting of the required number of regular teaching staff for the institute.

"The homoeopathy college, which has 12 departments, requires immediate appointment of at least 36 regular lecturers, construction of one full-fledged indoor hospital and other infrastructure development," students' union president Gopal Krushna Padhy said.

"This is not a full-fledged indoor unit and we will continue agitation till all the demands are fulfilled," he said.

The students demanded that a full-fledged indoor hospital facility be opened shortly and all vacancies in teaching and non-teaching posts be filled up on regular basis. Out of 36 sanctioned professor, reader and lecturer posts, only eight are in position in the college, they said.

Other demands include establishment of laboratory, construction of a boundary wall, increase in interns' stipend and hostel accommodation for girl students. The students blamed the state government's apathy for lack of infrastructure in the college.

Union ministry of ayurveda, yoga and naturopathy, unani, siddha and homoeopathy did not allow the Biju Patnaik Homoeopathic Medical College and Hospital for admission during 2016-17 for lack of infrastructure and shortage of faculty and non-teaching staff.

The college was given a deadline till December this year to fulfil all the conditions. Twenty-five students take admission inundergraduate course in homoeopathic medicine and surgery every year.