Grant Of Essentiality Certificate By State Government To Establish Medical College Is Not Simply A Ministerial Act: Supreme Court

Grant Of Essentiality Certificate By State Government To Establish Medical College Is Not Simply A Ministerial Act: Supreme Court: The Supreme Court held that grant of Essentiality Certificate by the State Government and Consent of Affiliation by the University is not simply a ministerial act.The court held that essentiality...

SC Directs A UP Medical College To Deposit Five Crores For Intentionally Violating Medical Council Regulations While Admitting Students

SC Directs A UP Medical College To Deposit Five Crores For Intentionally Violating Medical Council Regulations While Admitting Students: ]Supreme Court has on Wednesday directed Saraswati Medical College to deposit an amount of Rupees Five Crores to the Supreme Court's Registry for intentionally violating the Medical Council...

SC imposes ₹5cr fine on UP med college

SC imposes ₹5cr fine on UP med college

TIMES NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi:25.02.2021 

The Supreme Court on Wednesday imposed Rs five crore as fine on a private medical college in Unnao for granting admission to students in violation of the Medical Council of India (MCI) regulations but allowed the 132 students to complete the MBBS course on a condition that they will do community service for two years after becoming doctors.

A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and S Ravindra Bhat said Saraswati Medical College admitted 132 students without seeking a nod from the Director General Medical Education (DGME), Uttar Pradesh but said cancelling their admission at this stage would not serve any useful purpose as they have already completed the second year MBBS course.

The top court also directed the medical college not to recover the amount from the students in any manner whatsoever.

Couple sues Air India for denying them paid seats; wins ₹15k relief

CONSUMER IS KING

Couple sues Air India for denying them paid seats; wins ₹15k relief

Petlee.Peter@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:25.02.2021 

A city couple took national carrier Air India and its regional manager to a consumer court after the airline failed to allot them seats on a Bengaluru-Mumbai flight, despite them having paid extra to select them. The duo has now won a compensation of Rs 15,000 and refund of the seat-selection charges.

Rohith Salariya, 46, and his wife Raveen Salariya, 44, of CV Raman Nagar booked seats on an Air India flight from Bengaluru to Mumbai on January 14, 2017 and paid Rs 500 each to pick seats — 4A and 4B — for more legroom, as the woman had a back problem. The seat-selection charge was described as non-refundable and non-transferable.

On the day of travel, the couple reached Kempegowda International Airport and collected their boarding passes. Inside the flight, they realised that two other passengers had occupied their paid and booked seats. Much to their shock, they noticed that the boarding passes had seats 5A and 5B assigned to them and not the pre-booked ones.

The Salariyas raised the issue with the cabin crew, which attempted to put them on row 4, but the passengers seated there refused to move. The crew advised the couple to take 5A and 5B and asked them to register a complaint in the logbook. Left with no option, the couple travelled to Mumbai and upon their return to Bengaluru raised a complaint with Air India, which offered a refund after much persuasion. However, the refund never materialised.

Angry over the airline’s shoddy customer service, the couple approached Bengaluru Rural and Urban 1st Additional District Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum in Shantinagar on April 26, 2018 and filed a case against Air India, its city regional manager and one Santhosh Shenoy, customer service manager, for deficiency of service.

The couple’s lawyer presented the case, while Air India’s attorney stated that the fliers failed to spot the seat numbers on the boarding passes and the seats they had booked were given to another couple travelling with an infant. Moreover, he said seats on rows 4 and 5 had the same legroom and the woman passenger didn’t face any trouble on board and added that they refused to accept a refund of Rs 1,000 in a bid to make illegal gains in the name of compensation.

At the end of the court proceedings, which lasted for nearly three years, the judges heavily criticised Air India for not giving the couple the seats for which they had paid additional sums, making them face the ignominy in front of fellow passengers on board, when their rightful seats were denied and the cabin crew’s failed to help.

In the verdict pronounced on February 16 ,2021, the consumer court ruled that Air India, its Bengaluru regional manager and the customer care manager must jointly pay a compensation of Rs 10,000 to the complainants and Rs 5,000 towards their litigation expenses. This apart, they have been ordered to pay another Rs 1,000 as refund for seat selection, which was not granted.

Our PG NEET prep will be hit, say MBBS grads

Our PG NEET prep will be hit, say MBBS grads

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:23.02.2021 

Many fresh MBBS graduates who are keen on studying further say they can’t prepare for PG NEET while working in rural areas as it will affect their studies. Those who clear the exam — set to be held in April — can take up higher studies after signing a bond of Rs 30-50 lakh, stating they will come back and work in Karnataka for a year.

The doctors are also upset over the withholding of their credentials like permanent degree certificate and Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) registration, which are crucial to their professional and academic plans. “Why should only doctors do compulsory rural service and not engineers, architects and other professionals? Had we known MBBS is going to be a six-and-half-year course, many of us would not have opted for it,” said a fresh MBBS graduate.

Medicos from deemed-tobe universities who are seeking KMC registration are yet to get it. However, office-bearers of consortium of deemed-to-be universities said the state government has no role to play over such institutions. “KMC must act independently and as regional counsel of National Medical Council. The state government has no power over deemed-to- be universities. We will look into the matter,” said Dr S Kumar, chancellor, Sri Devaraj Urs University, Kolar, who also heads the consortium.

Prior to February 18, some graduates from deemed-to-be universities managed to get themselves registered with KMC. The registration is mandatory for both those working as doctors and those continuing further studies. Those who approached KMC February 18 onwards have been told no registration will be done unless the director of medical education issues an NOC.

Fresh graduates from deemed-to-be universities are running from pillar to post seeking appointments with the health commissioner and DME seeking exemption from the compulsory service.

Employing nearly 7,000 doctors for a year costs the government close to Rs 336 crore at Rs 40,000 a month as salary. “Where are so many medical officers’ posts vacant even if all hospitals in urban and rural centres are put together? Why hasn’t the government planned implementation in a phased manner,” asked medicos who are thinking of petitioning the high court.

Dr S Sacchidanand, vicechancellor, Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, said only provisional degree certificates will be issued to students. “For the final degree certificate, they have to complete one year of rural service,” he added.

The government has put our lives in jeopardy by directing KMC not to issue registration. We didn’t sign any affidavit or bond when we took admission. Karnataka is the only state to withhold credentials of MBBS graduates from private colleges and deemed-to-be varsities. We are made to run from KMC to DME and the health department. None of them has clarity and no communication has been sent to our colleges

— A student from a deemed-to-be university

71kg of plastic, metal found inside a cow’s belly in NCR

71kg of plastic, metal found inside a cow’s belly in NCR

Gurgaon:25.02.2021 

A surgery on a cow that was injured in an accident in Faridabad threw up a stark reminder of Indian cities’ continued struggles with plastic waste and littering. Veterinarians who operated on the animal for about four hours on Monday found 71kg of plastic waste and other non-biodegradable substances like needles, coins, pieces of glass, screws and pins in its belly.

The surgery was successful, but the cow is not out of danger yet. “The next 10 days are going to be very critical,” said Dr Atul Maurya, who was part of the three-member team that performed the surgery on the seven-year-old animal.

The cow was rescued from NIT-5 in Faridabad after it was hit by a car. It was taken to Devashray Animal Hospital, where veterinarians found the animal was kicking its own stomach, an indication that it was in pain. They also diagnosed a problem with the excretory system. After a few tests, the vets confirmed the presence of harmful substances inside the stomach.

Dr Maurya said it took nearly four hours to clean the four chambers of the animal’s stomach that mostly had polythene. TNN

7k fresh MBBS grads set to begin 1-year rural service in state

7k fresh MBBS grads set to begin 1-year rural service in state

Sunitha.Rao@timesgroup.com

Bengaluru:  25.02.2021 

Nearly 7,000 MBBS graduates who have completed their internship in Karnataka over the past few months are set to be assigned for mandatory rural service for one year.

The service, which was mandatory for only government-quota candidates, is now being extended to private, management and NRI quota candidates for the first time this year.

If doctors want to take up higher studies, then they must submit a bond for Rs 30 lakh to Rs 50 lakh, stating their willingness to serve later. Karnataka is the only state where private, management and NRI quota candidates are required to do the mandatory rural service.

On February 15, the director of medical education, Dr PG Girish, sent a letter to heads of all government and private medical colleges in Karnataka asking them not to release the original documents to those who have completed undergraduate, postgraduate degree/diploma, super-specialty courses in various disciplines. The letter quoted the Karnataka Compulsory Service Training by Candidates Completed Medical Courses Act, 2012.

No clarity: Director of medical edu

You are requested not to release original documents unless you receive NOC/instructions to release the documents collected at the time of admission, from this office. This may be scrupulously followed,” the letter, a copy of which is with TOI, read.

Though the compulsory one-year rural service bond is being taken by the government since 2012, enforcement had not taken place so far. Till now, MBBS graduates used to file an affidavit before KMC stating they would return and work for one year in government-specified hospital, and were given KMC registration to work as doctors.

From this year, fresh MBBS graduates are not being issued KMC registration certificate. “The matter is before the government. MBBS graduates will have to complete the one-year government training service before seeking the registration,” said Dr H Veerabhadrappa, president, KMC.

DME Dr PG Girish said there is no clarity whether the rural service is applicable to students who have studied under private-quota seats in private colleges and deemed-tobe varsities. “We’ve asked private and government medical colleges to send the list of graduating MBBS students. We will share data with the health department, which will issue appointment letters via counselling,” he said.