In a relief to medical students wanting to pursue post-graduate courses, the Union Health Ministry has proposed to do away with NEET-PG and instead the final MBBS examination would be enough for admission to MD and MS programmes.
The amendment has been incorporated in the revised draftNational Medical Commission (NMC) Bill which would be sent to the Cabinet soon,official sources told PTI.
According to them, the changes have been incorporated in thebill on the directions of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
“According to the amendments made in the fresh NMCBill, entry into the PG programmes will be on the basis of the results of theNational Exit Test (NEXT), which would be held as a common exam across thecountry. So the candidates would not have to appear in a separate exam afterclearing the MBBS final exam for admission to PG courses,” the sourceexplained.
The students would also not be required to appear in aseparate exam after MBBS to obtain a license to practice.
However, for admission to PG programmes at AIIMS, clearing aseparate exam will remain mandatory. Also, the NEET Super Speciality, which isa national-level entrance exam for admission in DM/MCh courses, will continue,sources said.
Every year 80,000 students take admission into MBBS coursesin about 480 medical colleges in the country, while 1.5 lakh students appearfor entrance exams for admission to around 50,000 PG seats.
The NMC Bill was introduced in Parliament in December 2017,but it lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha.
After its introduction in the lower house in 2017, the Bill,which aims to replace the Medical Council of India Act, 1956 and included thecontentious provision of a “bridge course” to allow practitioners ofalternative medicines to pursue allopathy, was referred to a Department-RelatedParliamentary Standing Committee following massive protests from the medicalfraternity.
The first version of the Bill also proposed a national-levellicentiate exam for all MBBS graduates for getting licence to practice inIndia.
But it was removed following strong protests by severaldoctor bodies.
The provision of the ‘bridge course’ was also stronglyopposed by health bodies, including the Indian Medical Association, whichclaimed that allowing AYUSH doctors to practice modern medicine would promote”quackery”, although the ministry had argued that the provision seeksto address the “acute shortage” of doctors in the country.
The parliamentary panel gave its recommendations in March 2018, following which the Health Ministry scrapped the provision of ‘bridge course and also made some other changes as suggested by the committee before moving the official amendments in the Lok Sabha. “It has been left to state governments to take necessary measures for addressing and promoting primary healthcare in rural areas,” the amendment stated and also made the punishment for unauthorised practice of medicine more severe with imprisonment of up to one year along with a fine of up to Rs 5 lakh. PTI