Commendable achievement: Wahge
[ Pradeep Kumar ]
NAHARLAGUN, 23 Dec: The then general hospital here was converted to the Tomo Riba Institute of Health and Medical Sciences (TRIHMS) as the first medical college-cum-300-bedded hospital in the state in 2017, and its academic session started on 1 August, 2018 for 50 students.
It was set up with the motto ‘Knowledge, Ethics, Wisdom and Service’, which has been amply proved by its achievements.
The sole credit goes to Shakuntala Gamlin, who as union joint secretary (health) approved the medical college. But its building construction works were stalled due to escalating costs from Rs 35 crore to Rs 184 crore for upgrading the general hospital to a medical college, named Tomo Riba Medical College. Then chief minister Dorjee Khandu, during visit to the hospital once, had given sanction on the spot with green signal to the general hospital chief medical officer Dr Moji Jini to go ahead.
The matter had evoked criticism from various quarters that the students would be spoilt instead of becoming doctors.
Dr Jini, who was appointed the first director of the TRIHMS, with his never-say-die spirit went ahead unperturbed. The TRIHMS celebrated a major milestone as 49 of its first batch MBBS students passed out and received their degrees during the first convocation in May 2024.
Chief Minister Pema Khandu had termed it a significant achievement for the state’s healthcare system. The GoAP had fulfilled its promise to the people of Arunachal Pradesh to increase the capacity, Khandu had noted.
This event marked the culmination of efforts to establish the TRIHMS as a leading medical institution with the second batch already completing exams and starting internships, and plans for further expansion into PG and super specialty courses, Dr Jini had said.
“These MBBS students would be useless outside as the TRIHMS is not a good medical college,” reacted the adversaries. Who bothers? They were ignorant of the massive growth of the college.
In 2020, the TRIHMS introduced three-year Diplomate of National Board (DNB) postgraduate courses in specialties like anaesthesiology, radiology, obstetrics & gynaecology, and paediatrics, accredited by NBEMS, providing advanced medical training in Arunachal to meet the demand for specialists. These DNB programmes are a significant step for the TRIHMS, allowing experienced doctors to pursue postgraduate studies and enhancing specialist care in the region, making it a landmark achievement for the state’s medical education.
In fact, the TRIHMS would have qualified to introduce DNB after the first batch of MBBS students passed out. But Dr Jini proved that existing facilities were enough for the course – an exception. Assam’s nine medical colleges and Sikkim Manipal Institute of Medical Sciences were offering DNB courses in NE India then.
The TRIHMS established a state-of-the-art emergency and trauma care unit within its new block, functioning as an independent department with advanced facilities like 32-slice CT scans, modular OTs, and a triage system (red/yellow/green zones) in collaboration with AIIMS New Delhi, significantly boosting emergency response.
Super-specialties were introduced with advanced imaging like 256-slice CT and 3 Tesla MRI, and the number of beds increased to 450.
The intake capacity rose to 100 from 50 in the 2024-2025 academic session. However, 49 MBBS students of the first batch created a milestone as 25 of them qualified for PG seats, which is far more than expectation, reflecting the quality of education they received.
When contacted, cardiologist Dr Tony Ete and ENT specialist Dr Jego Ori admitted and gave a list of qualifying students who had faced the national level competition.
The students who qualified for MD seats after second round subject-wise are Dr Sheetal Kulkarni (medicine), Dr Mahima Nath (radiodignosis), Dr Harjeet Singh Gulati (DNB ortho), Dr Yasni Doni (radiodignosis), Dr Noorin Yazma (MS OBG), Dr Simran Agarwal (MS OBG), Dr Tashi Phuntsok (MS OBG), Dr Tseltim Dawa (radiodignosis), Dr Sangey Dakpa (medicine), Dr Tar Aja (radiodignosis), Dr Tabing Gungji (MS ortho), Dr Kime Sunya (DNB anaesthesia), Dr Wukean Baki Garam (MD ped), and Dr Rido Anu (MS general surgery).
Pleased with their performance, Health & Family Welfare Minister Biyuram Wahge said, “Heartiest congratulations to 2018 batch students of the TRIHMS for their remarkable performance in NEET PG 2025. With 25 of 49 students qualifying, all securing ranks below 15,000 in an examination attended by over 2.42 lakh candidates, this is truly a commendable achievement.”
This success reflected the dedication of the students, tireless efforts of the faculty members and administrative staff, and strong institutional support system. With more students still attending counselling, the results would be much better for the TRIMHS to shine in the national medical platform. “Proud moment for the TRIHMS and Arunachal Pradesh,” Wahge added.
The Arunachalee MBBS students who would be specialists would not have been possible without the establishment of the TRIHMS. The adversaries have maintained stoic silence as they never expected such landmark performance.
Thus, along with the TRIHMS, the names of Shakuntala Gamlin, Dorjee Khandu and Dr Jini would go down the annals of the state’s history for an institution that would benefit needy people for posterity.
