NEWS TODAY 04.02.2025

 

NMC to take up patients’ appeals against state council rulings

NMC to take up patients’ appeals against state council rulings

Rema.Nagarajan@timesofindia.com 04.02.2025

In a victory for patients’ rights, the National Medical Commission has decided that it will take up appeals of patients in cases against doctors. For almost five years, since the NMC was constituted in Sept 2020, it has been rejecting patients’ appeals stating that only doctors have the right to appeal against decisions of state medical councils. However, the NMC decision is yet to be made public. The minutes of the NMC meeting held on Sept 23, 2024, obtained through the right to information, showed that the NMC had agreed that all appeals received by its Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB) will be entertained. In case of action not being taken by state councils on complaints filed by non-medicos (read patients or their families) even after issuance of reminders by the boards, it was decided that EMRB may take over the com plaint/matter from the state council and dispose of it. The NMC was refusing to hear patients’ appeal citing section 30(3) of the NMC Act 2019. 

The Section states: A medical practitioner or professional who is aggrieved by any action taken by a State Medical Council under sub-section (2) may prefer an appeal to the Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB)against such action, and the decision…” Citing this section the EMRB and the NMC stated that the law only allowed medical practitio ners aggrieved by decisions of state councils to appeal. “I have been repeatedly arguing that patients have the right to appeal against decisions of state medical council under the ethics regulations of 2002, which have been in force all through,” said Dr KV Babu an ophthalmologist and RTI activist, who has been following up the issue through RTI applications and complaints to the ministry and the NMC since 2022. 

The clause allowing patients to appeal was added to the ethics regulations of 2002 following a Supreme Court order. Responding to several complaints from patients, the health ministry added a provision for patients to appeal in the draft of the National Medical Commission (Amendment) Bill  which was made public in Dec 2022. However, the bill has remained in limbo. In Aug 2023, the NMC brought in a new ethics code to replace the ethics regula tion of 2002. However, in the face of protests from doctors and the pharmaceutical and medical device industry, the new regulations were held in abeyance and the NMC reiterated that the old regulations would be applicable. However, patients’ appeals continued to be rejected. “The NMC Act states that ‘the rules and regulations made under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956, shall continue to be in force and operate till new standards or requirements are specified under this Act or the rules and regulations made there under’. 

The ethics code was not replaced by the NMC, except briefly in Aug 2023. Otherwise, the 2002 regulations have been in operation right from the inception of the NMC. So, the NMC’s decision to disallow appeals of non-doctors was always illegal. I am happy that finally better sense has prevailed,” said Dr Babu. Over the years, over a hundred patient appeals have been rejected

Choice-filling for PG med seats ends today

Choice-filling for PG med seats ends today 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK  04.02.2025 

Ahmedabad : The central govt health ministry announced an extension for postgraduate medical course choice filling until 11.55pm on Tuesday (Feb 4). The admission committee for professional undergraduate & postgraduate medical educational courses (ACPUGMEC, ACPPGMEC) on Saturday launched a fresh round of choice filling after the NEET PG percentile criteria were reduced in Jan. The Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) adjusted the NEET PG 2024 qualifying percentile across categories on Jan 4 to address unfilled MD, MS, and diploma positions across the country. The revised criteria permit general and EWS (economically weaker section) category candidates scoring 15 percentile and above to join counselling, while SC, ST, OBC, and PwD categories can participate with 10 percentile and above. 

Committee sources indicated that nearly 900 students were eligible for this choice-filling round, which concludes at 11.55pm on Tuesday. The previous year witnessed the NEET PG qualifying percentile being reduced to zero across all categories due to widespread vacancies. In Gujarat, following second-round allocations for postgraduate medical programmes, 212 positions remained unreported in MD, MS, and diploma courses, with 69 seats unfilled, amounting to 281 vacant positions.

FMGE certificates of 3 medicos revoked

FMGE certificates of 3 medicos revoked 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 04.02.2025

Ahmedabad : The National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) has ordered the revocation of foreign medical graduate exam (FMGE) certificates of eight medical students for submitting false information. The students include three from Gujarat (two from Anand and one from Ahmedabad), two from Karnataka, and one each from Delhi, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh. All of them graduated from LLC Caucasus International University in Georgia. 

The board has directed state medical councils to immediately cancel these candidates’ practice registrations. According to the Jan 27 order, these candidates appeared for FMGE in Dec 2022 or June 2023 and provided fraudulent provisional documentation of their medical courses. The FMGE eligibility requires completion of a six-year medical programme, including an internship from Semesters 6 to 12.

Investigation revealed discrepancies between the subjects listed in their provisional documentation and the actual sixth-year curriculum. Sources said these candidates submitted provisional certificates without completing their mandatory internships. The NBEMS is expected to investigate similar cases where foreign medical students may have submitted provisional certificates without fulfilling the internship requirement

Bennett Univ launches School of Design

Bennett Univ launches School of Design 

04.02.2025

Bennett University has launched the School of Design, which will offer a four-year Bachelor of Design (B Des) programme with three specialized tracks in Fashion Design, Communication Design, and Game Design. In a statement, the university said the school will foster innovation, entrepreneurship, and handson learning with industry leaders. Workshops and labs like Metal Workshop, Wood Workshop, VR Lab Design and Gaming Studio, Media Lab, Fashion–Pattern Making & Garment Construction Studio and Ceramic Studio will provide hands-on practical environments where students merge theory with practice. The statement added that the school’s advisory board includes several industry leaders. “This collaboration between industry and academia ensures that students receive cutting-edge knowledge, hands-on experience, and global industry exposure, equipping them to excel in the dynamic world of design,” it said. TNN

Govt eyes PG route to create 10,000 new medical seats

Govt eyes PG route to create 10,000 new medical seats

DurgeshNandan.Jha@timesofindia.com 04.02.2025

New Delhi : After increasing the number of undergraduate (UG) medical seats to approximately 1.2 lakh, the govt is now focusing on increasing postgraduate (PG) seats. Sources said PG medical seats are going to be the focus in fulfilling the budget announcement for adding 10,000 medical seats over the next one year. This will increase avenues for MBBS graduates to pursue a higher degree and to fulfil the rising demand for specialist doctors, said a source. India is well-placed to achieve the WHO recommendation of one doctor per 1,000 population by 2030, according to the Economic Survey 2024-25, tabled in Parliament a day before the Union budget was presented on Feb 1. 

The report said at present, there are 13.86 lakh doctors in the country, which translates into a current availability ratio of 1:1263.

“The WHO standard norm of 1:1000 seems to be attainable by 2030 with a conservative 50,000 doctors being licensed every year till 2030,” it added. Meanwhile, the Post-Graduate Medical Education Board (PGMEB) of the National Medical Commission (NMC), with a view to enhance quality and uniformity of PG medical education, has decided to constitute an expert committee for each specialty. These committees will be responsible for preparing a model curriculum and developing assessment forms for assessing institutes besides addressing other academic requirements.

Periyar univ’s PhD criteria sparks row

Periyar univ’s PhD criteria sparks row

TNN | Feb 4, 2025, 03.59 AM IST

Salem: The eligibility criterion announced by the Periyar University for admission to doctoral degrees has sparked a controversy.

The university has mandated four-year bachelor's degree, in accordance with the 2020 new education policy (NEP), to seek admission for PhD in the university.

However, in Tamil Nadu, the eligibility criterion is a postgraduate degree.

Founder of Dravidar Viduthalai Kazhagam 'Kolathur' Mani viewed this change in the university’s announcement as a subtle implementation of the Union govt’s NEP.

District secretary of the Students Federation of India S Pavithran said the state govt is yet to accept the Union govt’s NEP. “It is an attempt to indirectly impose the Union government's NEP,” he added.

However, vice-chancellor R Jaganathan refuted these claims, stating that the guidelines clearly specify that candidates must possess a postgraduate degree. He said, "To distinguish between professional undergraduate degrees such as agriculture and engineering and those in arts and sciences, we have included provisions for candidates with four-year degrees in arts and sciences.” The VC acknowledged that this detail was unintentionally overlooked during the guideline formulation.