HC notices to NMC, Kaloji on MBBS first year exam pattern

HC notices to NMC, Kaloji on MBBS first year exam pattern

SagarKumar.Mutha@timesgroup.com

Hyderabad:12.10.2021

Justice Abhinand Kumar Shavili of the high court has issued notices to the Union health ministry, the National Medical Commission, the Kaloji Health University and the state health department asking them to explain their stand on a petition filed by Kaitha Geethika and 30 other fellow MBBS students who challenged the examination pattern set by Kaloji University for first year and instant examinations.

Contending that they were conducted contrary to the manner that was prescribed in the Regulations on Graduate Medical Education (Amendment) Act, 2019, these students were seeking directions to the authorities to conduct a fresh supplementary examination for them this time in tune with the prescribed format.

According to their counsel Unnam Muralidhar Rao, the question paper set by the university was a complete mismatch to the guidelines framed by the National Medical Commission (NMC). Scores of students failed in the main examination and also in the instant examination because the format was entirely different from the mode of training they received, the counsel added.

He explained to the court that the Medical Council of India (the predecessor of NMC) had introduced competency-based undergraduate curriculum (CBA) and brought in the 2019 statutory regulations for the new assessment method. The recent annual and the instant examination pertaining to MBBS first year were done contrary to this assessment mode and hence a huge number of students failed in their first-year examinations and were detained.

When students all over the country were failing in huge numbers, the central and state authorities must take corrective steps, he said. He also sought a direction to the university and medical colleges to allow the failed students to attend second year classes. The judge sought counters from authorities and medical colleges in which the petitioners were pursuing MBBS. The judge also asked G Pujitha, counsel for NMC, to ascertain their views and posted the case to October 21.