Shriman Karamshibhai Jethabhai Somaiya is the Founder. It's no small achievement to distinguish oneself in such diverse fields as commerce, education, and philanthropy. Pujya Shriman Karamshibhai Jethabhai Somaiya, born on May 16 1902 in the remote village of Malunjar in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra, India, was however, a blessed person by dint of hard work and singular devotion to service.
Born to humble beginnings he rose to become one of the doyens of the sugar industry in Western India. His pioneering efforts revolutionized the sugar industry. Karamshibhai was a humble person. He worked hard and for long hours.
The young Karamshi, after completing school at the New High School in Mumbai (now the Bharda School) went back to his hometown in Ahmednagar embarking on a career of tireless work marked by singular devotion to whatever he did.
The early decades of the 20th century were a period of significant national resurgence and no sensitive young man could ignore the stirring presence of Mahatma Gandhi. Karamshi was no exception. His ever seeking mind was moulded by Gandhiji's ideas of 'Swadeshi' and 'Satyagraha'. To make India independent and industrially and economically advanced, was the dream of every young mind.
Young Karamshibhai Somaiya engaged in looking after his father's small grocery business, would travel from village to village selling groceries and booking orders all the while nursing the dream of the resurgent India of Mahatma Gandhi and Swami Vivekananda.
To further his dream of contributing to India's economic independence, he became a partner in a leading sugar trading firm M/s. Shobachand Ramnarayan Kothod of Shrirampur in Ahmednagar district. His knowledge of the sugar industry was soon widely acknowledged and respected and in course of time he came to be called 'the Sugar King of India'.
When in the thirties the Deccan canals were commissioned by the Government, Shri K.J. Somaiya launched the Sakarwadi factory in 1939, and another, Lakshmiwadi factory in 1941,the start of the Godavari Sugar Mills Ltd. in Maharashtra State. One of the most successful entrepreneurs of recent times in the State, Shri K.J. Somaiya occupied many positions of public responsibility. He was the President of the Deccan Sugar Factories Association, the President of the Deccan Sugar Technologists Association and played a leading part in the deliberations of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. He was often consulted on matters crucial to the Sugar Industry.
Endowed with a sharp business acumen, a balanced perspective and a social bent of mind he set up the Somaiya Trust in 1953 for furthering his dream of shaping young minds through quality education. For this purpose he bought a large area of land at Ghatkopar in the godforsaken outlying eastern suburb of Mumbai, much to the consternation of the members of his family and colleagues. It was no place they thought to develop an educational complex in a far flung marshy swamp!
Shri K.J. Somaiya proved all skeptics wrong as witnessed by the mushrooming growth of Ghatkopar as a formidable centre of middle class living. Karamshibhai laid the foundation for SOMAIYA VIDYAVIHAR in 1959. In close to four and a half decades it has grown into a large educational complex with 34 institutions catering to diverse fields of education such as Humanities, Engineering, Education, Medicine, Management and Mass Communication, with more than 27000 students and 1700 teaching faculty on a throbbing 65 acre campus!
It was the vision of Shri K.J. Somaiya that modern professional education must remain true to the spirit of Indian ethos and culture. He insisted on value-based education, believing firmly that a community uncaring for its traditions is decadent and insubstantial. He was passionate about propagating the Sanskrit language and the promotion of studies in ancient Indian thought and culture. He envisaged Somaiya Vidyavihar as the Nalanda of learning where students and teachers would live in an intellectual and spiritual fellowship.
No sketch of Shri K.J. Somaiya can be complete without mentioning his philanthropy. He established the Girivanavasi Pragati Mandal in 1974 in the tribal area of Dahanu, in Thane District, 110 kms from Mumbai, to alleviate the problems and suffering of the tribal community. Well known surgeons and physicians were associated with the annual eye-cum-medical camps.
The Mandal established a training centre and experimental farm for agriculture extension work. He founded a residential school to cater to the educational needs of children of the migrant tribal population providing free quality instruction. He also built a 40 bed hospital with a resident doctor facility to cater to their health needs. Shri K.J. Somaiya himself worked in these centres and conducted health camps setting an example of selfless service. His work in the drought affected districts of Gujarat, specially Kutch, during 1987-88 won the appreciation of the then Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi.
In all he did, Pujya Karamshibhai brought a sense of love and humanism, qualities imbibed in his early youth from the teachings of Mahatma Gandhi. He believed in the ancient Sanskrit saying (na manushit paro dharmah). "There is no religion greater than Man". "There is no life that is not in community" said eminent poet T.S. Eliot. Pujya Karamshibhai's life exemplified these lofty principles through practice.
Shri K.J. Somaiya passed away on May 9, 1999, a week before his 97th birthday. Somaiya Vidyavihar is the living legacy he's left behind, a standing monument to his sagacity, perseverance and foresight.
Shri K.J. Somaiya was warm and endearing. Stately in appearance, immaculately dressed, generally in spotless white hand spun khaddar, he exuded a picture of resourcefulness and restraint. He was compassionate and reached out to those in suffering. At the age of 60 he relinquished the leadership of his economic enterprise to his son Dr Shantilal Somaiya, and fully immersed himself in social service. He was committed to the ideal "what you receive from society give back multifold".
SYLLABUS FOR MEDICAL COLLEGE
Courses Offered:
Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS)
K.J.Somaiya Medical College
APPLICATIONS ARE INVITED FOR HOUSEPOSTS
DNB Admissions - Aptitude Test
List of Provisionally Selected Candidates for Admission against NRI Quota to MBBS Course (2008-09)
SYLLABUS FOR MEDICAL COLLEGE
Admissions
No candidate shall be allowed to be admitted to the medical curriculum of first year of Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) Course until
i) he/she has completed the age of 17 years on or before first day of July of the year commencing the course.
ii) he/she has passed the qualifying examination as under: Pre-University examination or the higher secondary examination the Indian School Certificate equivalent to 10+2 higher secondary examination after a period of 12 years study, the last 2 years of study comprising of Physics, Chemistry, Biology with English as a subject.
The selection of students to medical College shall be based soley on merit of the candidate, who must have obtained not less than 50% marks in English and 50% marks in Physics, Chemistry and Biology taken together at the qualifying examination.
In respect of candidates belonging to scheduled castes/scheduled tribes and other backward classes the marks obtained is 40% instead of 50%.
Course of Study
1. The graduate medical curriculum is oriented towards training students to undertake the responsibilities of a Physician of first contact who is capable of looking after the Preventive, Promotive, Curative and rehabilitative aspects of medicine.
2. Duration of the course is 4 1/2 years divided into 9 semesters of 6 months each. The period is divided into 3 phases:
PHASE - 1: (2 semesters) Preclinical subjects - Human Anatomy, Physiology, including Biophysics, Biochemistry and Introduction to Community Medicine including humanities.
PHASE - 2: (3 Semesters) Paraclinical/Clinical subjects where both are done concurrently. Paraclinical subjects: Pathology, Pharmacology, Microbiology and Forensic Medicine and Community Medicine and Clinical Subjects.
PHASE - 3 (Continuation of study of clinical subjects, 4 semesters) Medicine and allied specialities - General Medicine, Paediatrics, Tuberculosis and Chest, Skin and Sexually transmitted diseases, Psychiatry, Radio-diagnosis, Infectious diseases.
Surgery and allied specialities - General Surgery, Orthopaedics including Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation. Ophthalmology, Anaesthesiology, Radiotherapy, Dentistry.
Obstetrics & Gynaecology including Family medicine, Family Welfare, Planning.
This is followed by compulsory rotating intership of one year. It is a phase of training wherein a graduate is expected to conduct actual practice of medical and health care and acquire skills under supervision so that he/she may become capable of functioning independently. Faculty The teaching faculty consists of Professor/Associate Professor, Assistant Professor/Lecturer and Tutor/Registrar.
The following departments in the College are headed by the following qualified and experienced staff:
1. MD - Anatomy
2. MD - Physiology
3. MD - Pathology
4. MD - Pharmacology
5. MD - Microbiology
6. MD - Forensic Medicine
7. MD - Community Medicine
8. MS - Ophthalmology
9. MS - ENT Dr. S.S. Joshi
10. MD - Medicine
11. MS - Surgery Dr. V.V. Dewoolkar
12. MD - Paediatrics
13. Diploma - Dermatology (DVD)
14. MD - Psychiatry
15. MD - Radiodiagnosis
16. Orthopaedics Dr. Derick D'Lima, M.S.
17. MD - Dentistry
18. MD - Anaesthesiology
19. MD - Obstetrics & Gynaecology
Infrastructure :The College and hospital are located in a H-shaped buildign in Sion, Mumbai The College houses the Pre - and para clinical departments with their laboratories, library, Lecture halls, seminar rooms and Animal House.
The Hospital has outpatient in-patient, casualty and laboratory services. It has 700 beds for the in-patients who are looked after free and are also given free food. There are 5 major Operation theatres, a minor operation theatre, Radio diagnosis department, Physiotherapy and Pharmacy. The casualty offers 24 hours service. There is a Urban Family Welfare Centre and 5 rural health centres. A 48 bedded rural health centre at Nareshwadi is also attached to the College. There is a canteen, facilities for indoor and outdoor games for the students.
Collaborations
K.J. Somaiya Medical College is affiliated to the University of Mumbai and has been recommended for recognition by the Medical Council of India.
The College runs postgraduate course in Bio-chemistry leading to M.Sc. and Ph. D. Degrees.
The College is recognised by the college of Physicians and Surgeons of Bombay to train candidates for its diplomas in subjects of Pathology and Microbilogy, Biochemistry, Dermatology, Psychiatry, ENT, Ophthalmology, Orthopaedics, Obst. & Gynaecology, Radio-diagnosis, Preventive and Social Medicine, Anaesthesiology and Paediatrics.
The College has established collaboration for exchange of students and for training, with Yale Medical School, New Haven. Cornell Medical Centre, New York and School of Public Health, Harvard.
The College has applied for permission to start Post graduate courses in General Medicine, General Surgery, Paediatrics & Obst & Gynaecology.
Ayurvihar Medical Complex
The Ayurvihar Medical Complex is proposed to be a multidisciplinary institution housing various disciplines of medicine (allopathy, ayurveda, homeopathy, naturopathy). The basic infrastructure of the Complex has been worked out. It will have a 1000 bed inpatient and outpatient Charitable Hospital, Private Nursing Home with Critical Care Centre, a dedicated Operation Theatre Centre, Medical College, and a Diagnostic and Research Centre, all equipped with state-of-the-art technology and equipment.
Currently, the Complex has a 700 bed inpatient hospital, the K.J. Somaiya Hospital and Research Centre. Proposed as open wards and semi-private rooms, the Inpatient department is located in an existing seven storey structure which is linked with a central spine to all other buildings of the Hospital as well as K.J. Somaiya Medical College. The Outpatient department, designed to cater to 2,500 to 3,000 patients per day, has a dedicated wing for upto 21 departments.
The 150 bed Critical Care Centre houses 60 ICU and ICCU beds, 50 step down beds in five storeys, and 40 deluxe rooms and suites on two upper storeys. It is closely linked with the Operation Theatre Centre, a dedicated building with 32 operation theatres on four floors of eight operation theatres per floor.
A separate Emergency, Trauma and Day Care Centre is located in proximity to vehicular access. It is designed with self-sufficient critical care and operation theatre facilities for 60 patients and is directly connected with the Critical Care and Operation Theatre Centres.
Radiology, Pathology, Blood bank, Eye bank and other common facilities are located centrally to cater to every department of the Complex.
The Medical College, with nineteen departments and an intake of 100 students per annum, is an independent institution that is affiliated to the Inpatient and Outpatient department of the Hospital. Students are in direct contact with the Hospital, an independent Library and Museum building, and a separate Auditorium block with 3 auditoria whose capacities vary from 150 to 400 persons.
The Residential Medical Officers and Staff Housing will be located on the 8th to 10th floors of the Medical College building and the Outpatient department, which places it in close proximity to the Hospital and Medical College.
An independent Diagonostic and Research Centre for the Hospital is planned for the future. This Diagonostic and Research Centre is designed to accomodate state of the art technology and equipment to be shared by all the departments of the Complex. Another part of the future plan comprises of a 1600 person capacity Auditiorium and Conference Centre with a 400 room, 3 star Hotel as a part of one structure.
Together, these form the Ayurvihar Medical Complex with over 240,000 square meters of proposed built up, self-sufficient space for most kinds of undergraduate medical education, medical care and hospitality.
