ARMED FORCES MEDICAL COLLEGE

ARMED FORCES MEDICAL COLLEGE

Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC) is a premier medical institute of India acknowledged as a centre of excellence for education and research. The institute was set up on May 1, 1948 by an act of parliament of India on the recommendations of the BC Roy Committee by the amalgamation of various defence medical organizations. The ‘Graduate Wing’ of AFMC was established on August 4, 1962. Its symbol has within a lotus wreath, surmounted by the Ashokan lions, the rod of Aesculapaeus with the serpent intertwined. The snake has been symbolically associated with the medical profession. The snake was carried by Apollo and Mercury around a rod. In the form depicted in the crest, intertwined around a staff, it was carried by Aesculapaeus, the Greek god of health and healing. The same symbol is also found in Indian mythology. The staff here is called the ‘Brahmadanda’, the stick of Lord Brahma. The two snakes symbolize ‘Kundalini’, the fire of eternity. It was natural for the eternal symbol of the science of healing to occupy its place in the crest of Armed Forces Medical College. Its motto in Sanskrit ‘Sarve Santha Niramayaha’ meaning ‘Cure for All’.