‘Exorbitant private college fees deny underprivileged access to medical courses’

‘Exorbitant private college fees deny underprivileged access to medical courses’




The number of candidates aspiring to study MBBS has gone up from 16 lakh in 2019 to 24 lakh in 2024, the Survey says. Getty Images

Maitri Porecha

New Delhi 01.02.2025

Skyrocketing fees for undergraduate medical education remain a considerable challenge that denies the opportunity to make the MBBS degree accessible and affordable for students from less privileged backgrounds, the Economic Survey says.

The number of medical colleges grew from 499 in the financial year 2018-19 to 648 in 2022-23 to 780 in 2024-25, during which MBBS seats increased from 70,012 in 2018-19 to 96,077 in 2022-23 to 1,18,137 in 2024-25 and postgraduate seats from 39,583 in 2018-19 to 64,059 in 2022-23 to 73,157 in 2024-25.

Despite the National Medical Commission issuing guidelines for determination of fees and all other charges in respect of 50% of seats in private medical institutions and deemed-to-be universities, fees remain high ranging from ₹60 lakh to ₹1 crore or even more in the private sector, which holds 48% of the MBBS seats, the Survey notes.

The number of candidates aspiring to study MBBS has increased consistently over the years, from around 16 lakh in 2019 to around 24 lakh in 2024.

The very low pass percentage of foreign medical graduates in the qualifying exam for practising in India (16.65% of 2,02,385 students) indicates sub-par quality of medical education abroad.

“As policy intervention to dissuade medical education abroad is crafted, keeping costs in India within reasonable limits is essential,” the survey points out.

The availability of opportunities for medical education is geographically skewed, apparent from the fact that 51% of undergraduate seats and 49% of postgraduate seats are in the southern States, the Survey says.

Also, the Survey points out that market estimates indicate that remuneration of fresh graduates is around ₹5 lakh a year and senior doctors earn between ₹12.5 lakh and ₹18.4 lakh a year in cities.

Survey snubs AI impact on workforce, says skilling could put Indians ahead

Survey snubs AI impact on workforce, says skilling could put Indians ahead

Techies working at an IT unit in Visakhapatnam. file photo

The Hindu Bureau

New Delhi

The Economic Survey 2024–25 struck an upbeat tone on the implications that Artificial Intelligence (AI) could have on the workforce. In defiance of the concern that AI could replace some jobs, particularly in the information technology sector, the Survey says that appropriate skilling would allow Indians “to stay one step ahead of technological developments,” and that harnessing AI “would minimise or even eliminate the potential adverse impact on employment and, if possible, turn it into a force for augmenting employment.”

In an entire chapter dedicated to AI and labour, the Survey acknowledges, “With AI research and development currently concentrated in the hands of a few, very large companies that control the resources to erect high entry barriers, AI adoption in place of humans presents the risk of concentrating the benefits of automation.”

Engle’s pause

The report acknowledges that while previous technological advancements had often increased job opportunities, this came at the expense of displaced workers facing “protracted” unemployment, for decades on end, known as Engle’s pause.

Such a lag is not desirable for India’s service-led economy, the report advances. “India would have to create an average of 78.5 lakh jobs annually in the non-farm sector by 2030 to cater to the rising workforce,” the report says.

But the report also casts technological advancements as a net benefit for employment, citing low job losses in India from factory automation, and the potential for “Human-AI teams” in scientific research.

The role of institutional involvement in stewarding AI’s growth in India is key, the report posits. It warns labour markets themselves are “shifting” in anticipation of AI impact. As such, the report says, “The responsibility for course correction will then fall in the hands of the public sector,” calling for vigilance.

‘Hostile work culture, long hours in office affecting mental health’

‘Hostile work culture, long hours in office affecting mental health’

Pull the plug: The Survey said a phone-based childhood is rewiring the very experience of growing up.Getty Images

Given the direct costs to human welfare, putting mental well-being at the centre of economic agenda is prudent, states the Economic Survey, tabled in Parliament; it suggests highest tax rate on ultra-processed foods, regulation of advertisements

Bindu Shajan Perappadan

New Delhi  01.02.2025 

Overexposure to social media, lack of exercise, not spending enough time with one’s family and overwork (hours exceeding 55-60 per week) have all worsened mental well-being among Indians, said the Economic Survey 2024-25, tabled in Parliament on Friday by Union Finance and Corporate Affairs Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

Hostile work cultures and excessive hours spent working at the desk can adversely affect mental well-being and ultimately put the brakes on the pace of economic growth, states the Survey while highlighting that lifestyle choices, workplace culture and family situations are critical for productivity.

If India’s economic ambitions are to be met, then immediate attention must be given to lifestyle choices that are often made during childhood/youth. “The increase in mental health issues in children and adolescents is often linked to the overuse of the Internet, specifically social media.The phone-based childhood is rewiring the very experience of growing up,” it stated.

Given the direct costs to human welfare, putting mental well-being at the centre of economic agenda is prudent, states the Survey, besides listing a series of mental health initiatives taken by the Centre. “It is about time to find viable, impactful preventive strategies and interventions. India’s demographic dividend is riding on skills, education, physical health and, above all, mental health of its youth,” it said.

Establishing a link between good mental health and clean eating habits, the Survey noted that individuals who rarely consume ultra-processed or packaged junk food have better mental well-being than those who regularly do so.

It also says that those who rarely exercise, spend their free time on social media or are not close to their families have worse mental well-being.

It emphasised the urgent need for school and family-level interventions to encourage healthy pastimes such as meeting with friends and playing outside,and also said that investing time in building close family bonds would go a long way in keeping children and adolescents away from Internet.

Ultra-processed foods

The Survey suggested that the government look at bringing in a higher tax rate for ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and may also consider a ‘health tax’ measure targeted specifically at brands/products that advertise these foods.

It further suggested that the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare urgently define nutrient thresholds for sugars, salt, and saturated fats to regulate advertising, adopt warning front-of-pack labels (FOPL), and impose stricter marketing restrictions on unhealthy foods, especially targeting children under 18.

Noting that a multi-pronged approach is required to address the concerns emerging from increased inclusion of UPFs in diets, the Survey said that misleading nutrition claims on UPFs need to be tackled and should be brought under the scanner.

The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India could consider bringing UPFs under regulation with a clear definition and standards, including stricter labelling requirements.

Recall notification on MKU V-C Search Committee, says R.N. Ravi

Recall notification on MKU V-C Search Committee, says R.N. Ravi

The Higher Education Department issued a G.O. notifying the search committee on January 9.

The Hindu Bureau  31.01.2025

CHENNAI

Governor-Chancellor of Madurai Kamaraj University R.N. Ravi has called on the State government to recall the notification it has issued on the constitution of a Vice-Chancellor Search Committee for the university.

In a statement, the Raj Bhavan said the government’s notification “is in difference to the search committee” the Governor had constituted and sent for issuing notification. Mr. Ravi had constituted a committee that included the University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman’s nominee, besides those of the Chancellor, the Syndicate, and the Senate of the university, “as per the provisions of the Madurai Kamaraj University Act, 1965, and as per the prevailing regulations of the UGC, 2018, which is held to be mandatory by the Supreme Court.”

He had directed the State government to notify the constitution of the committee through a letter dated December 16, 2024, consisting of four members, with the Chancellor’s nominee as the convener. The Higher Education Department, however, issued a Government Order (G.O.) on January 9, notifying the search committee but “deliberately excluded the UGC Chairman’s nominee, in violation of the Supreme Court judgment,” the statement said.

It cited the case of Prof. (Dr) Sreejith P.S. vs. Dr. Rajasree M.S. and others (Civil Appeal numbers 7634-7635 of 2022, SLP(c) Nos, 21108-21109 of 2021) that any Vice-Chancellor appointment made on the recommendation of a search committee constituted without adhering to the provisions of the UGC Regulations shall be void ab initio.

Server Busy’: Is DeepSeek Really Competing With Chat GPT?

Server Busy’: Is DeepSeek Really Competing With Chat GPT?

DeepSeek, China's artificial intelligence chatbot that rose to compete with OpenAI's Chat GPT, has been making the headlines ever since China released the software across multiple app stores.

By: Srishti Mukherjee

January 29, 2025 1:10 pm Asia/KolkataIST, Updated 2 days ago

DeepSeek, China's AIchatbot that rose to compete with OpenAI's Chat GPT, has been making the headlines ever since its release

DeepSeek, China’s artificial intelligence chatbot that rose to compete with OpenAI’s Chat GPT, has been making the headlines ever since China released the software across multiple app stores. But is it really as good as it seems?

While DeepSeek promises to produce results comparable to other modern LLMs, such as OpenAI’s GPT-4o and o1, when in use, users have reported a lack of response from the DeepSeek servers after the initial few attempts. “It responded to my prompt twice before it started saying that the server is busy and this continued for the next half hour. How much does one wait? I swiched back to Chat GPT for my assignment,” said a user.

DeepSeek’s Servers Busy

While DeepSeek had a good user response in the first few days of its release, the online users are beginning to find it difficult to get responses from the Chinese chatbot. Users have stated that they have to refresh the chat multiple times and give the prompt again and again until the chatbot offers a response.

NEWS TODAY 30.01.2025

 

Classroom ‘wedding’ with student puts Bengal college prof in a spot

Classroom ‘wedding’ with student puts Bengal college prof in a spot

 Poulami Roy Banerjee & Ashis Poddar | TNN 3.01.2025

Kolkata/Haringhata : An assistant professor of applied psychology at Bengal’s Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology has been sent on leave & ordered to face an inquiry over a set of viral videos showing her decked out as a bride & exchanging garlands with a first-year student during a purported “wedding psychodrama” inside a classroom. 

Payal Banerjee, the teacher seen in the videos, said Wednesday that she had resigned and would be initiating legal action against “a jealous colleague” allegedly out to malign her. She said her students con ceptualised the mock wedding as part of a freshers’ welcome event on Jan 16 and that she played along, not knowing a scandal would erupt over videos allegedly circulated by her unnamed colleague. “They (the students) requ ested me to play the main character, and I agreed. 

Other faculty members knew about it and agreed to the programme; no one objected then. My first-year students and I acted per the script. There was nothing serious about it,” she said. An e-invitation designed for the “psychodrama” mentions Jan 9 as the date for the “haldi ceremony” and Jan 14 for “mehndi and sangeet”. The “wedding day” was Jan 20. The events purportedly took place inside the same classroom at the institute's campus in Haringhata, around 60km from Kolkata. Interim vice-chancellor Tapas Chakrabarty said the inquiry committee consists of five faculty members.