HC allows 8 doctors to appear in pre PG exam despite internship issue

HC allows 8 doctors to appear in pre PG exam despite internship issue 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 03.05.2025

Bhopal : A division bench of the MP high court has allowed eight doctors to appear in the prePG exam despite not completing the three years of internship. They claimed that their internship period was two years when they began their internship in MP after completing their MBBS from China, but it was later extended to three years. They challenged the extension of the internship period, arguing that the rules of the game should not be changed midway. 

The eight doctors in question, including Dr Saurabh Rafguvanshi from Vidisha and Dr Jai Sharma from Ujjain, said they took admission in the MBBS course in China in 2017. They returned home in 2019 following the outbreak of the Corona pandemic and completed their MBBS course online after returning to India. Students who completed MBBS from abroad required one year of internship to get registration as a doctor in MP, but during the Corona period, it was extended to two years. Their internship period would have ended on March 31, 2025, but in November 2024, it was extended to three years. 

Appearing for the doctors, senior counsel Aditya Sanghi said the National Medical Commission extended the internship period for students doing MBBS from Ukraine and the Philippines due to the war in Ukraine, but the MP Medical Council applied it to all students who completed MBBS from abroad. He argued that the extension of the internship period was challenged in the MP High Court. Meanwhile, pre-PG medical exams are due in June and July, and the last date for filling the form for the exam is June The bench of justices Sanjeev Sachdeva and Vinay Saraf, while issuing notices to respondents, asked the MP Medical Council to allow the eight doctors to appear in the pre-PG exam.

NEWS TODAY 2.5.2025

 

₹2 bribe leads to SC ruling: Stamp vendors are public servants

₹2 bribe leads to SC ruling: Stamp vendors are public servants

Dhananjay.Mahapatra@timesofindia.com 03.05.2025

New Delhi : The conviction of a stamp vendor under the Prevention of Corruption Act for charging Rs 2 extra for a Rs 10 stamp paper in Dec 2003 kept the threetier judiciary engaged for almost 22 years to find an answer to the question — Is a stamp vendor a public servant and is he liable under the anti-corruption law? Two constitutional courts — Delhi High Court and Supreme Court — cumulatively deliberated for 16 years, and on Friday, SC ruled that stamp vendors are public servants, which will bring lakhs of them in states within the ambit of the PC Act. 

However, the stamp vendor who sparked the debate was acquitted by SC after two decades. The incident happened at the sub-registrar’s office at Janakpuri on Dec 9, 2003. The stamp vendor demanded Rs 12 for selling a Rs 10 stamp paper and on exchange of chemical-laced currency notes, he was caught by the Anti-Corruption Bureau and a case filed under the Act on corruption charges. The trial court convicted him under the Act in 2008, termed him to be a public servant and sentenced him to one-year imprisonment with a Rs 1,000 fine. 

The HC took six years to decide the issue — whether a stamp vendor is a public servant for the purposes of the PC Act — and penned a lengthy judgment to concur with the trial court. The appeal by the convicted stamp vendor remained pending with SC for 11 years. On Friday, a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan acquitted him for lack of evidence and overturned the concurrent finding of guilt by the trial court and HC. In a 45-page judgment, SC ruled that “stamp vendors across the country, by virtue of performing an important public duty and receiving remuneration from the govt for the discharge of such duty, are undoubtedly public servants within the ambit of Section 2(c)(i) of the PC Act”. 

Writing the judgment, Justice Pardiwala said as the legislature has given a wide and comprehensive definition of ‘public servant’ to curb the menace of corruption, “it is the nature of duty being discharged by a person which assumes paramount importance when determining whether such a person falls within the ambit of the definition of public servant as defined under the PC Act”. The bench said since the licence to become a stamp vendor is issued by govt and is entitled to receive a discount on the stamp paper he sells, he would certainly be treated as a person “remunerated by the govt” for the purpose of the Act.

Doctors across the country should be mandated to prescribe only generic medicines: SC

Doctors across the country should be mandated to prescribe only generic medicines: SC

The writ petition highlighted the enormous amounts of money that are spent on sales and promotions to influence doctors, with a view to generating a higher number of prescriptions.

Representational image.Photo | IANS

Suchitra Kalyan Mohanty

01 May 2025, 11:19 pm

NEW DELHI: Doctors across the country should be mandated to prescribe only generic medicines instead of brand names, the Supreme Court observed on Thursday while hearing a Public Interest Litigation seeking enforcement of a statutory code to regulate unethical marketing practices by pharmaceutical companies.

The top court made these strong observations after hearing a petition filed by the Federation of Medical & Sales Representatives Associations of India (FMSRAI) and others. The court scheduled the matter for further hearing in July.

A three-judge Bench of the apex court, led by Justice Vikram Nath and comprising Justices Sanjay Karol and Sandeep Mehta, observed, "We believe that doctors should be mandated to prescribe only generic medicines. That will fall in line with what you are praying for. In Rajasthan, there is now an executive instruction that every medical professional must prescribe only generic medicine."

The petition, filed by the FMSRAI, challenged the effectiveness of the current voluntary regulatory regime and sought a directive to enforce the Right to Health under Article 21 of the Constitution.

The petitioners alleged that the pharmaceutical industry continues to engage in unethical marketing practices.

"The instant writ petition has been filed by the petitioners seeking strict regulation of the marketing and promotion of drugs by pharmaceutical companies vis-à-vis healthcare professionals," stated the plea filed in the apex court.

The writ petition also highlighted that enormous amounts of money are spent on sales and promotions to influence doctors, with a view to generating a higher number of prescriptions.

Indian Railways will implement new rules from May 1, everyone will be effected

Indian Railways will implement new rules from May 1, everyone will be effected

Sweta Mitra

April 30, 2025 - 12:06 PM

Indian Railway New Rules: Big news for railway passengers. Now, from May 1, there are so many rules going to change in the railway. On the first day of each month, the rules change. This time there is going to be a big change in the rules of the railway, due to which the passengers of the railway will be affected. Passengers with waiting list tickets will not be allowed to travel in sleeper or AC coaches. They will be allowed to travel only in general class. Indian Railways is implementing strict rules to improve the travel experience for those with confirmed tickets from May 1.

If the ticket booked online through IRCTC remains on the waiting list, it gets automatically cancelled. However, many passengers who buy waiting list tickets from the counter still travel in sleeper and AC coaches. From May 1, passengers with waiting list tickets will be banned from traveling in sleeper and AC coaches.

If a passenger with a waiting ticket is found sitting on a seat in these coaches, the TTE will have the right to impose a fine on him or shift him to the general compartment. Captain Shashi Kiran, Chief Public Relations Officer of North Western Railway, said that this rule has been implemented to ensure the convenience of passengers with confirmed tickets so that they do not face inconvenience during travel due to those with waiting tickets.

Often passengers with waiting tickets enter sleeper and AC coaches and try to forcibly occupy the seats of those with confirmed tickets, causing trouble for everyone. Moreover, when the number of passengers with waiting tickets increases in these coaches, the routes get blocked, making movement difficult and travel inconvenient for all the passengers. So, if you often travel with waiting tickets, then you will now need to be extra cautious and plan your journey more carefully.

Fund-starved UoM slashes guest faculty count, passes Rs 150-crore deficit budget

Fund-starved UoM slashes guest faculty count, passes Rs 150-crore deficit budget

This is the third time in a row that the university is staring at a deficit budget.

The number of guest lecturers has been reduced from 115 to 75 |

Binita Jaiswal

Updated on: 

01 May 2025, 8:22 am

2 min read

CHENNAI: Despite opposition from the syndicate and senate members, the University of Madras (UoM) has gone ahead with deductions in its expenses under several heads, including reduction in number of guest faculties and non-teaching staff, in its budget estimate for 2025-26.

The university has passed a deficit budget of Rs 149.86 crore for the financial year. This is the third time in a row that the university is staring at a deficit budget. The revised budget for 2025-26 was passed on Wednesday after senate members sent their views through email to the registrar.

“Without any discussion, the budget was passed after taking the views of senate members through emails. This is not a fair process. Many senators had vehemently opposed the budget cuts, but we were informed that the majority was in favour of it and so the budget was passed,” said a senate member.

Usually, the university’s annual budget is passed in the senate meeting held at the end of March. However, this year in the senate, only the budget for April was passed instead of the annual budget. The cash-strapped university was asked by the state government to revise its budget estimates by making necessary deductions in expenses to deal with the mounting deficit. While the deficit in the budget estimate for 2023-24 of its non-plan account stood at Rs 105.54 crore, in 2024-25 it rose to Rs 146.16 crore and this year it has again gone up to Rs 149.86 crore. 

“The non-plan account (expenditure) in 2024-25 stood at Rs 270.40 crore, however, after making all the budget cuts, they have managed to bring it down to Rs 246.47 crore,” said a senate member. The non-plan account deals with the receipts and expenditure connected to the normal functioning of the university.

The budget allocation for the university department’s stationery and equipment maintenance was reduced by 20%, while maintenance of buildings was cut by 40%, and the allocation towards student facilities, sports, and physical education was reduced by 30%. The number of guest lecturers has been reduced from 115 to 75 and part-time (hourly basis) guest faculty from 46 to 30.

According to university officials, the deficit is the outcome of years of accumulation. The syndicate and senate members had written to the administration against the budget cut, as it would affect the functioning of the university and is inimical to the interests of students. The members had appealed to the state government to provide grants to deal with the budget cuts.

“All our appeals have fallen on deaf ears,” said a syndicate member.

NMC cracks down: 20 medical colleges face show cause notices as annual report deadline extended

NMC cracks down: 20 medical colleges face show cause notices as annual report deadline extended

Final 12-day window granted for compliance as commission targets non-compliant institutions

The commission has repeatedly warned medical colleges about the consequences of non-compliance.(Image: EdexLive Desk)

EdexLive Desk

Published on: 

01 May 2025, 8:26 pm

The National Medical Commission (NMC) has taken strong disciplinary action against 20 medical colleges that failed to submit their Annual Declaration Reports (ADRs), issuing show cause notices and demanding immediate compliance, according to Medical Dialogues.

Despite multiple previous notifications, these institutions have not met their regulatory obligations, prompting the commission to extend the submission deadline from May 2 to May 12, 2025. Defaulting colleges must now submit the required data along with a Rs 50,000 penalty per course (inclusive of GST).

In addition to these serious violations, the NMC identified 66 other medical colleges that submitted incomplete Annual Disclosure Reports and has directed them to resubmit their documentation on the commission's portal.

"It has been observed that despite three (3) Public Notices through the NMC website, twenty (20) colleges/institutes, as per attached list, have failed to upload their data for which a Show Cause Notice has already been served on them. This has been viewed very seriously by the Competent Authority in the NMC," stated the Postgraduate Medical Education Board (PGMEB) in its April 29 notice.

Dr Raghav Langer, NMC Secretary, subsequently communicated with all medical college principals and deans regarding the extension, emphasising the requirement for defaulting institutions to comply with the new deadline.

The commission has repeatedly warned medical colleges about the consequences of non-compliance, having previously stated that no MBBS seats would be permitted for institutions failing to submit their Annual Declarations within specified deadlines. 

Despite multiple deadline extensions since November 2024, numerous colleges have continued to ignore regulatory requirements, leading to the current enforcement actions.