On Monday, 133 students staged a protest by burning photographs of the dean for foreign students, M Y Dyakov, and uploading videos on social media.
At least 133 Indian students from across the country, who travelled to Russia in 2016 after gaining admission at the Smolensk State Medical University (SSMU) for an MBBS course, have been left in the lurch as they have been told by the university that they enrolled for the course in Russian, not English. While lessons were imparted in English for the first, the university started instructing them in Russian in the second year, i.e. 1 September, onwards.
These students have now been forced to terminate their studies, and over 100 students left Russia on Monday to return to India. The Indian Embassy in Moscow has taken up the matter with the university.
The students and their parents have alleged that Rus Education, an educational consultancy firm in Delhi, cheated them by claiming they were enrolling for a six-year MBBS course with English as the instructional language, when they were actually being enrolled for a seven-year MBBS course in Russian.
On Monday, 133 students staged a protest by burning photographs of the dean for foreign students, M Y Dyakov, and uploading videos on social media. The students also claim that Rus Education made them pay their fees through a firm called Green Channel Travel Services Limited.
Once they landed in Russia, they were asked to sign another contract with an agency called Centre for International Education.
In a letter written to Anjali Pandey, Minister (Education and Community Welfare) at the Embassy of India in Moscow, the students blame Rus Education for cheating them and jeopardising their careers.
In an e-mail response to a questionnaire sent by DNA, SSMU flatly refuses to recognize Rus Education and Green Channel Travel Services limited. "The University does not have and has never had any contractual or other relations with any company named Green Channels Travel Services Limited. The University does not have and never had any contractual or any other relations with any company named Rus Education," Dyakov said via e-mail.
"The university was not supposed to teach them (133 students) in English medium as per the agreement signed between the University and the company 'Centre for International Education', through which these students had come to the University. Actually, the company, 'Centre for International Education' had made false promises to these students that they will be taught in English medium," he clarified, adding. "The Indian Embassy in Moscow is in regular touch with the University and thorough information has been provided to them."
Speaking to DNA, one of the students, who did not wish to be named, said, "We felt cheated and had no option but to follow what the educational consultancy had asked us to do. We now plan to seek legal help."
Syed Imran Rigan, director of Rus Education, denied the allegations, saying, "We are trying to resolve the issue as soon as possible." Rigan refused to comment further.
Language gap
The MBBS students went to Russia in 2016 and were taught in English for the first year
The college switched to Russian as the language of instruction in the second year, starting from September 1
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Smolensk State Medical University")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}