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Doctors Are Opposing The National Medical Council Bill. Here’s Why You Should Too

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The Medical Council of India (MCI) has been repeatedly accused of corruption. Money power can get you anything and everything and recognition to colleges for various medical courses is sold to the highest bidder. The rot came to light when its president Khetan Desai was arrested for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹2 crore to grant recognition to a medical college in Punjab.

So we can all agree that the system needs change, and it’s encouraging the government took cognizance of the matter. In came the NMC – National Medical Commision Bill.

However, it’s sad to say that the government’s proposal is so far from any solution that it’s going to actually hurt if not destroy medical education and medical service in our country.

Let’s start with medical education. Under NMC, the government wants to remove the regulations of fees for 50% seats at both MBBS and postgraduate level. This means that children from middle-class families can forget about studying medicine. The fees in some private medical colleges in Karnataka for postgraduation are in the tune of ₹90 lakh per year. Fees this exorbitant kills the dreams of lakhs of medical aspirants. It’s simply not possible to pay that much unless, of course, your dad is Ambani or Adani. Our prime minister probably spends too much time with these people that he has forgotten about the people who actually make this country.

Another curveball from the government is the proposed bridge course for AYUSH doctors to prescribe (in essence practice) allopathic medication. After wide protests, this has been left to the state governments to decide, but the provision still exists. I cannot understand the logic of the decision makers. How do they expect a homoeopathic doctor to learn in just six months what an MBBS doctor learns in 5-and-a-half years? Additionally, if you want AYUSH doctors to practice allopathy, then why do we need AYUSH doctors in this country? If an AYUSH doctor takes up the bridge course, aren’t they indirectly telling the public that they’re not confident in their science?

The government says that they want the bridge course to address the lack of doctors in rural areas. Does shortage of doctors mean you will make any Tom, Dick and Harry an allopathic medicine practitioner? Would these politicians be willing to take their loved ones to these “bridge course” doctors?

Shortage can only be solved by increasing the number of MBBS and PG seats. Rural services should be incentivised and appropriate infrastructure should be provided. Also, the bureaucracy should be held accountable. It’s also not that doctors aren’t interested in rural service. There are many doctors who want to but haven’t been given the opportunity.

The NMC bill also allows private medical colleges to increase MBBS and PG seats (with no mention for increase in medical seats for government medical colleges) on their own, without inspections and other procedures. This means the private colleges can now sell more seats (as the fees will be unregulated) and make more profits. This rule shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone since many private medical colleges are owned directly or indirectly by politicians.

In short, the NMC bill is disaster waiting to happen, for the doctors and the general public. If you worry about your health, it’s time to worry about the doctors who take care of it. If you do not want substandard doctors to treat you in future, oppose this bill! If you don’t want medical education to be a privilege, oppose this bill! If you dont want the medical fraternity to be governed by politicians and bureaucrats who are famous for their incompetence, oppose this bill!

This protest is as important for you as it’s for the doctors. We can only make the government come to its senses if we stay together and speak in one voice.

You must be to comment.

  1. vishal prajapati

    Yes,I am there,stop NMC bill to be passed…
    If you really want more doctor’s to be practicing in rural areas….many MBBS doctors and MBBS aspirants are awaiting this can be done only by increasing the number of MBBS seats in government medical colleges for MBBS aspirants students, since they are working very very extremely very hard to get it….and they learn for 5.5 year… instead of increasing no. Of seats in Pvt medical colleges which is just made for profits…and this bridge course is extremely wrong since MBBS course of 5.5 YEAR can’t be compressed to only 6 MONTHS …this is extremely wrong and unsafe for future of India and quality of Indian’s doctors…

  2. Dr. Ppc

    I love India.. no words..?‍♀️
    Why the hell being a middle class fellow.. I took up medicine

  3. dhruv singh

    I don’t care. I know I won’t get admission in any case! Scored 300 last year ,this year got 470. No admission. I am from general. God let me be born in a middle class dalit home next time. For this life let’s forget doctory. Fed up of studying. No use. Will go for polytechnic or nursing course now.

  4. dhruv singh

    However just to correct you, 40% reservation in private medical colleges is proposed. To also point out your stupid understanding, ask yourself what is NMC? Why the old commission is being replaced by new one? Other regulations can always vary but why new commission? Composition of the new commission. Wrote an article on hearsay basis. Half hatched chicken – youth ki awaaz!
    Secondly on rstv I heard that both ayurvedic and allopathic doctors receive almost the same education for first three years. After that specialization comes in. The youth therefore should at least try to understand the points that adults raise. It reminds me of my hasty friend who always hears khana as gana and to as gu and then declare his grandmother as being slow, slimy and stupid, but trust me it’s often the other way round.

  5. Shataakshi Raj

    Are you people already sold ? Maybe! That is why you are just trying to misguide us! Mci is a sold corrupted body and that can be seen. when you say the fees are not regulated fyi just check the fees of medical deemed colleges on mcc . Students just qualified neet can easily take admissions in such colleges and get reg certificates from mci.
    Though i donot support the bridge course thing but the next exam will bring out equality among students studying abroad as it will bring transparancy in screening exam.this will bring out the most deserving candidates
    Nmc bill has more positivity than negativity

  6. Rongala rakesh Kumar

    Let the bill have some ammendments. Like all politicians who are in power or aspire to come to power and their relatives should be in the business of running medical colleges.

  7. bulleyesloh Bulleyesloh

    NMC bill is correct. Modi ji Sarkar doing right thing in medicine field. I full support nmc bill for making better India

  8. bulleyesloh Bulleyesloh

    Nmc bill should come in action for better quality of doctors in India

  9. dr. farooq ahmed

    In my view , being a modern medical
    practitioner , v should allow our revials ayush doctor to learn modern medicine, if they are interested to do do . I hope many of my fellow colleagues will oppose this !

  10. Sanjeev Sharma

    I am against the MNC Bill.

  11. Justc4A

    These illiterate politicians and fraudsters donot know the importance of medical education and health services. Look at the amount of cut in GDP that it is alloting to healthcare. How can u expect a qualified doctor to work if there is no infrastructure.
    About this bill, it is totally bullshit. They are just trying to please the private sector businessmen.

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An ambassador and trained facilitator under Eco Femme (a social enterprise working towards menstrual health in south India), Sanjina is also an active member of the MHM Collective- India and Menstrual Health Alliance- India. She has conducted Menstrual Health sessions in multiple government schools adopted by Rotary District 3240 as part of their WinS project in rural Bengal. She has also delivered training of trainers on SRHR, gender, sexuality and Menstruation for Tomorrow’s Foundation, Vikramshila Education Resource Society, Nirdhan trust and Micro Finance, Tollygunj Women In Need, Paint It Red in Kolkata.

Now as an MH Fellow with YKA, she’s expanding her impressive scope of work further by launching a campaign to facilitate the process of ensuring better menstrual health and SRH services for women residing in correctional homes in West Bengal. The campaign will entail an independent study to take stalk of the present conditions of MHM in correctional homes across the state and use its findings to build public support and political will to take the necessary action.

Saurabh has been associated with YKA as a user and has consistently been writing on the issue MHM and its intersectionality with other issues in the society. Now as an MHM Fellow with YKA, he’s launched the Right to Period campaign, which aims to ensure proper execution of MHM guidelines in Delhi’s schools.

The long-term aim of the campaign is to develop an open culture where menstruation is not treated as a taboo. The campaign also seeks to hold the schools accountable for their responsibilities as an important component in the implementation of MHM policies by making adequate sanitation infrastructure and knowledge of MHM available in school premises.

Read more about his campaign.

Harshita is a psychologist and works to support people with mental health issues, particularly adolescents who are survivors of violence. Associated with the Azadi Foundation in UP, Harshita became an MHM Fellow with YKA, with the aim of promoting better menstrual health.

Her campaign #MeriMarzi aims to promote menstrual health and wellness, hygiene and facilities for female sex workers in UP. She says, “Knowledge about natural body processes is a very basic human right. And for individuals whose occupation is providing sexual services, it becomes even more important.”

Meri Marzi aims to ensure sensitised, non-discriminatory health workers for the needs of female sex workers in the Suraksha Clinics under the UPSACS (Uttar Pradesh State AIDS Control Society) program by creating more dialogues and garnering public support for the cause of sex workers’ menstrual rights. The campaign will also ensure interventions with sex workers to clear misconceptions around overall hygiene management to ensure that results flow both ways.

Read more about her campaign.

MH Fellow Sabna comes with significant experience working with a range of development issues. A co-founder of Project Sakhi Saheli, which aims to combat period poverty and break menstrual taboos, Sabna has, in the past, worked on the issue of menstruation in urban slums of Delhi with women and adolescent girls. She and her team also released MenstraBook, with menstrastories and organised Menstra Tlk in the Delhi School of Social Work to create more conversations on menstruation.

With YKA MHM Fellow Vineet, Sabna launched Menstratalk, a campaign that aims to put an end to period poverty and smash menstrual taboos in society. As a start, the campaign aims to begin conversations on menstrual health with five hundred adolescents and youth in Delhi through offline platforms, and through this community mobilise support to create Period Friendly Institutions out of educational institutes in the city.

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A student from Delhi School of Social work, Vineet is a part of Project Sakhi Saheli, an initiative by the students of Delhi school of Social Work to create awareness on Menstrual Health and combat Period Poverty. Along with MHM Action Fellow Sabna, Vineet launched Menstratalk, a campaign that aims to put an end to period poverty and smash menstrual taboos in society.

As a start, the campaign aims to begin conversations on menstrual health with five hundred adolescents and youth in Delhi through offline platforms, and through this community mobilise support to create Period Friendly Institutions out of educational institutes in the city.

Find out more about the campaign here.

A native of Bhagalpur district – Bihar, Shalini Jha believes in equal rights for all genders and wants to work for a gender-equal and just society. In the past she’s had a year-long association as a community leader with Haiyya: Organise for Action’s Health Over Stigma campaign. She’s pursuing a Master’s in Literature with Ambedkar University, Delhi and as an MHM Fellow with YKA, recently launched ‘Project अल्हड़ (Alharh)’.

She says, “Bihar is ranked the lowest in India’s SDG Index 2019 for India. Hygienic and comfortable menstruation is a basic human right and sustainable development cannot be ensured if menstruators are deprived of their basic rights.” Project अल्हड़ (Alharh) aims to create a robust sensitised community in Bhagalpur to collectively spread awareness, break the taboo, debunk myths and initiate fearless conversations around menstruation. The campaign aims to reach at least 6000 adolescent girls from government and private schools in Baghalpur district in 2020.

Read more about the campaign here.

A psychologist and co-founder of a mental health NGO called Customize Cognition, Ritika forayed into the space of menstrual health and hygiene, sexual and reproductive healthcare and rights and gender equality as an MHM Fellow with YKA. She says, “The experience of working on MHM/SRHR and gender equality has been an enriching and eye-opening experience. I have learned what’s beneath the surface of the issue, be it awareness, lack of resources or disregard for trans men, who also menstruate.”

The Transmen-ses campaign aims to tackle the issue of silence and disregard for trans men’s menstruation needs, by mobilising gender sensitive health professionals and gender neutral restrooms in Lucknow.

Read more about the campaign here.

A Computer Science engineer by education, Nitisha started her career in the corporate sector, before realising she wanted to work in the development and social justice space. Since then, she has worked with Teach For India and Care India and is from the founding batch of Indian School of Development Management (ISDM), a one of its kind organisation creating leaders for the development sector through its experiential learning post graduate program.

As a Youth Ki Awaaz Menstrual Health Fellow, Nitisha has started Let’s Talk Period, a campaign to mobilise young people to switch to sustainable period products. She says, “80 lakh women in Delhi use non-biodegradable sanitary products, generate 3000 tonnes of menstrual waste, that takes 500-800 years to decompose; which in turn contributes to the health issues of all menstruators, increased burden of waste management on the city and harmful living environment for all citizens.

Let’s Talk Period aims to change this by

Find out more about her campaign here.

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A former Assistant Secretary with the Ministry of Women and Child Development in West Bengal for three months, Lakshmi Bhavya has been championing the cause of menstrual hygiene in her district. By associating herself with the Lalana Campaign, a holistic menstrual hygiene awareness campaign which is conducted by the Anahat NGO, Lakshmi has been slowly breaking taboos when it comes to periods and menstrual hygiene.

A Gender Rights Activist working with the tribal and marginalized communities in india, Srilekha is a PhD scholar working on understanding body and sexuality among tribal girls, to fill the gaps in research around indigenous women and their stories. Srilekha has worked extensively at the grassroots level with community based organisations, through several advocacy initiatives around Gender, Mental Health, Menstrual Hygiene and Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights (SRHR) for the indigenous in Jharkhand, over the last 6 years.

Srilekha has also contributed to sustainable livelihood projects and legal aid programs for survivors of sex trafficking. She has been conducting research based programs on maternal health, mental health, gender based violence, sex and sexuality. Her interest lies in conducting workshops for young people on life skills, feminism, gender and sexuality, trauma, resilience and interpersonal relationships.

A Guwahati-based college student pursuing her Masters in Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Bidisha started the #BleedwithDignity campaign on the technology platform Change.org, demanding that the Government of Assam install
biodegradable sanitary pad vending machines in all government schools across the state. Her petition on Change.org has already gathered support from over 90000 people and continues to grow.

Bidisha was selected in Change.org’s flagship program ‘She Creates Change’ having run successful online advocacy
campaigns, which were widely recognised. Through the #BleedwithDignity campaign; she organised and celebrated World Menstrual Hygiene Day, 2019 in Guwahati, Assam by hosting a wall mural by collaborating with local organisations. The initiative was widely covered by national and local media, and the mural was later inaugurated by the event’s chief guest Commissioner of Guwahati Municipal Corporation (GMC) Debeswar Malakar, IAS.

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