Type Private President Dr. Neville Fernando Founded 2008 | Established 2008 (2008) Phone +94 11 2 413351 Academic staff 194 | |
Vice-Chancellor Prof. Ananda Samarasekara Similar Sri Lanka Institute of Informatio, Proposed Pre‑clinical Building, University of Kelaniya, Colombo Internatio Nautical, Dr Neville Fernando Teaching | ||
The South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM) (originally known as the South Asian Institute of Technology and Management) is a privately owned educational institution providing higher education in Sri Lanka. It is the first private sector Green Campus to be established in the country. In July 2016, the Government of Sri Lanka suspended the provision for new admissions at the medical faculty of SAITM.
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History
The South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine was established in 2008 by Dr. Neville Fernando with the aim to provide tertiary qualifications in Medicine, Engineering and Information Technology, Management and Finance, and Information Communication Technology and Media. The institute was initially affiliated with the Nizhny Novgorod State Medical Academy (Russia), the Asian Institute of Technology (Thailand) and Buckinghamshire New University (England), awarding degrees through those respective institutes. In 2011 SAITM applied for recognition from the University Grants Commission (UGC) as a degree awarding institution, with the ability to award its own degrees. The UGC, in 2013, granted SAITM a degree awarding status despite protests from the Inter-University Students’ Federation (IUSF) and the Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA). SAITM held their first convocation in March 2013, conferring degrees to ten students from the Faculty of ICT and Media and eighteen students from the Faculty of Management and Finance.
In October 2016 SAITM appointed an acting Vice Chancellor, Professor Deepal Weerasekera, whilst the current Vice Chancellor, Professor Ananda Samarasekera, was on a leave of absence, relating to his alleged involvement in the Wasim Thajudeen murder case.
Medical qualifications
In 2016 the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC) and the Government Medical Officers' Association (GMOA) have both publicly stated that they were opposed the provisional registration of medical graduates from SAITM to practice as doctors in Sri Lanka. But it was later over ruled by court of appeal and it was informed that the graduates of SAITM can register with Sri Lanka Medical Council.
In 2017 Russian Ambassador Alexander Karchava also spoke up for SAITM and revealed that Nizhni Novgorod State Medical Academy has continuously expressed satisfaction with the training of Sri Lankan students and honors the ties with SAITM. According to him over 54 Russian doctors and professors worked in SAITM on a shift basis ensuring that SAITM students gain quality medical education.
Wasim Thajudeen murder case
In the ongoing investigations into the suspected murder of rugby player Wasim Thajudeen the Vice Chancellor of SAITM, Ananda Samarasekera, is suspected for misplacing the bones of the deceased during the post investigations. On 3 October 2016 the Criminal Investigation Department of Sri Lanka confiscated 26 human body parts from the Institute's laboratory during a search operation carried out to locate the missing body parts of suspected murder victim Wasim Thajudeen.
Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge murder case
Dr. K. Sunil Kumara, who is accused of giving a false post mortem report on Lasantha Manilal Wickrematunge and is accused of removing of Wickrematunge's body parts and Dr. Ananda Samarasekera are both currently working at South Asian Institute of Technology and Medicine (SAITM).