In a significant move, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced on Tuesday that the state government will rename the Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Medical College and Hospital in Barpeta to Barpeta Medical College and Hospital. This decision marks a notable shift in how medical institutions are identified in the state.

Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, who was the fifth President of India and hails from Assam, had his name associated with the medical college since its inception. However, Sarma emphasized that the current naming convention for medical colleges in the state ties them to geographical locations. For instance, institutions like the Gauhati Medical College and Dhubri Medical College are named after their respective cities. “But somehow, Barpeta Medical College was named after a person,” Sarma explained during a press conference, adding that this might cause some confusion among the public.

Interestingly, the Chief Minister mentioned that the previous name might lead people to mistakenly perceive the college as a private institution. To address this concern, the state Cabinet has not only greenlit the renaming but has also committed to honoring the legacy of Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed in a different way. Sarma indicated that he has been authorized to propose another institution name that truly reflects the stature of the former President.

The medical college is affiliated with Srimanta Sankardeva University of Health Sciences, serving as a key educational and healthcare hub in the region. This change in name seems to reflect a broader trend in Assam to align institutions more closely with their geographic identity while still finding ways to honor influential figures from the state’s history.