A Cabinet meeting on Friday endorsed the 11-point agreement reached with Dr KC and formed a three-member team to monitor the implementation of the deal, said Communications Minister Minendra Rijal.

The panel comprises Chief Secretary Leela Mani Paudyal, President of Nepal Medical Association Dr Anjani Kumar Jha, and Prof Dr YP Singh.  

Dr KC, a senior orthopaedician at the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, ended his hunger strike after 12 days on Thursday, after the government panel led by Paudyal agreed to address his demands. The Cabinet has also formed a three-member panel under Haribabu Bha-ttarai, former appeal court chief judge, to probe the Tribhuvan University decision to relocate its MBBS programme to Kirtipur from Maharajgunj.

The panel that comprises joint-secretaries from the Ministry of Education (MoE) and the Ministry of Health will submit its report after evaluating the TU decision, which, according to Dr KC, is an attempt to weaken the Institute of Medicine (IoM).

In his capacity as the TU chancellor, Prime Minister Sushil Koirala has already directed TU executives to withdraw the decision to relocate the IoM’s undergraduate programme. The Bhattarai-led panel will also investigate into the Kathmandu University’s decision to grant permission to Birat and Devdaha medical colleges to run MBBS programme, the MoE’s decision to provide letters of intent, and decision of Nepal Medical Council to allocate MBBS quotas to medical colleges, among others.  Meanwhile, Dr KC has welcomed the decision of the government to form two separate panels for implementation of the agreements. He said he is happy that the government has taken a prompt step towards addressing its commitment.  Dr KC also said that his struggle for reforms in medical education has not ended yet. “Though its form has changed, the concerned authorities should be clear that we haven’t withdrawn our protest,” he said. “We are keenly watching the progress in the implementation of the agreements.”