NEWS

Lok Sabha passes bill on NEET

A significant bill aimed at putting in place a single common examination for medical and dental courses was today passed by the Lok Sabha, with the government saying even private colleges will be under its ambit.

The Indian Medical Council (Amendment) Bill, 2016 and the The Dentists (Amendment) Bill, 2016 provides a Constitutional status to the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) examination" which is intended to be introduced in the academic session next year.

The Bill seeks to amend the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 and the Dentists Act, 1948 and replace the Ordinances that were promulgated by the government to circumvent the Supreme Court order for implementation of NEET examination this session itself.

Moving the Bill for consideration and passing, Health Minister J P Nadda said there were three main objectives behind the move -- end the multiplicity of examinations, have fair and transparent examinations and adopt non-exploitative process.



He said earlier students would have to travel long distances to appear for several medical entrance examinations.

Currently students undergo exploitation particularly with regard to the caiptation fees, he said, adding the new legislation will end this.

Responding to apprehensions expressed by members, particularly Tamil Nadu where reservation is upto 85 per cent, he clarified, "We are not going to touch the state quota.

Students in Tamil Nadu will be competing in Tamil Nadu only..

We should be very much clear about that."

However, AIADMK members were not satisfied and staged a walkout.

Nadda said the exam will be held on the basis of the syllabus of NCERT and the under-graduate exam will be taken up by CBSE and post-graduation by the national board of examination.

"In the syllabus, we will take care of the differences and we will do standardisation of syllabus so that rural students can also taken care of," he added. .

Petition filed against CPS courses in Gujrat

The Indian Medical Association has filed an application before the Gujarat High Court seeking to put a halt on admissions to the post graduate diploma course in Mumbai's College of Physicians and Surgeons (CPS). The IMA plea is an addition to a pending petition seeking cancellation of affiliation granted to CPS by the Gujarat government. The Mumbai-based institute was derecognised by the Medical Council of India (MCI) earlier this year while the Maharashtra government also took action against the institute that has gained notoriety for alleged corruption in admissions to the post graduate diploma courses.

The plea is likely to come up for hearing on August 20. "It has come to knowledge that CPS, Mumbai, has started admission procedure and counseling is also being scheduled. The admission procedure has been started in direct contravention to the provisions of Indian Medical Council Act, 1956 and if the same is permitted to continue then the students will be misguided and they will seek admission in this institute which is not recognised by Medical Council of India for Post- Graduate Medicine Courses," stated the plea filed by the IMA.

The petition also pointed out that students graduating from private colleges are likely to be unskilled doctors that may be hazardous to the health of the common man. "Most of the hospitals have inadequate in manpower and clinical materials. There is no system to ensure proper education training to doctors studying for their diploma to be conferred by the College of Physician & Surgeon, Mumbai. Hence, in such a situation it would be very difficult for students who seek admission in the current admission procedure," the plea added.

As per the petition, the state granted recognition to CPS to ensure back door entry to students who failed to secure admissions to post graduate and diploma courses in recognised courses. It is to be noted that the Medical Council of India (MCI), an apex body of medicos, had withdrawn approval to the college. The state government recently gave affiliation to eleven private hospitals and nursing homes, including three from the city, with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Mumbai (CPS). The institute offers diploma and fellowship courses in all medical streams and as per rules, students can enroll in affiliated hospitals for certificates from CPS.

However, the MCI withdrew recognition to CPS through two notifications issued in in 2009 and 2010. Despite this, in August 2011 the Gujarat government granted recognition to CPS and changed rules to facilitate affiliation and recognition of students enrolled in the Mumbai-based institutes. The state's rules allowed for changes contrary to the MCI's order. The state is yet to file reply even after three months of filling the plea.

Source: ahmedabadmirror.com

MARD demands single session-single paper for PG entrance

In a letter written to union health minister J P Nadda on July 10, central MARD president from Mumbai, Dr Sagar Mundada and secretary Dr Ayudh Magdum, have claimed that as per the Medical Council of India regulation, PG examinations should be a 'level playing field' which means that all students should be subjected to one set of question papers only.



But since past three years when National Board of Examination (NBE) has been conducting the PG entrance examination, the exam spans into 10-12 days as student's are divided into different batches and given different question papers. This results in a lot of disparity in the performance by students and it does not judge the students with the same yardstick.

"PG entrance has virtually become a game, more of luck than merit. Some question papers are relatively very easy and others difficult. This is really absurd. Earlier when AIIMS used to conduct this examination, it used to be a single day exam. We are just demanding uniform single exam for all PG aspirants. And it is just in line with any competitive examination in the country," said Dr Mundada.

MARD is demanding single paper for the All India Post Graduate Medical Entrance Examination (AIPGMEE), NEET PG, DNB and NEET Superspeciality.


Source: TOI

SC expresses doubt over validity of NEET ordinance

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday expressed doubt over validity of the ordinance providing that states could hold their own entrance examination for admission to undergraduate medical courses for the current academic year bypassing the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) but refused to interfere with its operation.
Refusing to stay the operation of the ordinance as 50 percent of the states have already conducted their own entrance examination for admission to government medical colleges, a bench of Justice Anil R Dave, Justice Shiva Kirti Singh and Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel, however said: "Prima facie we find that the validity of the ordinance is open to doubt."
NGO Sankalp had moved the top court seeking the stay of the ordinance contending that it was it was a patent exercise of judicial power in the garb of ordinance to put the court decision on hold for one year.A
Apparently unhappy with the government taking the ordinance route giving states the option of opting out of NEET for the academic session 2016-2017, the bench said: "That (ordinance) was not warranted. The purpose (of NEET) was uniform test with minimum standards."
Holding that the issuance of an ordinance to derail the court order was not "proper" or a "good practice", the bench said: "Once NEET became operative, no other exam could have taken place."
Justice Dave said that in view of the order of the court, "this should not have happened".
Telling Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi that its 28 April and 9 May orders directing the admissions to undergraduate medical courses could be only through NEET, Justice Singh said that this was "not only in the students' interest but in the larger interest of the society so that doctors should be (of) some minimum standards".
Urging the bench not to take issuance of the ordinance as an affront to the top court, Rohatgi told the bench that "government could have scrapped the NEET but it did not do it", noting it could have abolished NEET or changed the regulation providing for it but brought it as a law.
"What heavens will fall if it (state-wise exams) is allowed this year," he said, urging the court to look at the physical side of the issue as it was not a matter concerning five or ten students but lakhs of students. He told the court that in Tamil Nadu, admissions have already taken place, in Gujarat list would be out on Friday and in Maharashtra, counselling is in progress.
Addressing the court senior counsel Amarendra Sharan appearing for Sankalp told the court that the government action was "an attempt to defeat the order of this court".
"Once the court has passed an order, no authority can block it or undo it," he said, noting that the government could not keep in abeyance the order of top court for one year.
Pointing out that the corruption in admission was endemic across the country, senior counsel Vivek Tankha appearing for petitioner Anand Rai said that the government has made exception under pressure and even next year they would do so on another pretext.

Source: Firstpost