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Govt bans 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years

• The Union health ministry has banned 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years, overruling a Supreme Court panel that had cleared their alleged substandard facilities.
• The ministry also forfeited the colleges’ security deposit of Rs 2 crore each. It has, however, allowed 4,000 undergraduate students to continue studying at these institutes.
• “We based our decision on the inspection report which highlighted gross deficiency of facilities. But the decision will not impact students already studying,” Arun Singhal, joint secretary, health and family welfare, told Hindustan Times.
• Singhal did not explain why the government allowed the colleges that it found “unfit” to continue.

In May 2016, the Supreme Court appointed a three-member Oversight Committee (OC), headed by former chief justice ML Lodha, to check alleged corruption in the Medical Council of India, which regulates such studies, and suggest ways to improve standards.

By the time the court panel was constituted, the MCI had completed inspecting 109 new colleges that had applied to admit medical students in 2016. The MCI allowed only 17 colleges.

Govt bans 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years

• The Union health ministry has banned 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years, overruling a Supreme Court panel that had cleared their alleged substandard facilities.
• The ministry also forfeited the colleges’ security deposit of Rs 2 crore each. It has, however, allowed 4,000 undergraduate students to continue studying at these institutes.
• “We based our decision on the inspection report which highlighted gross deficiency of facilities. But the decision will not impact students already studying,” Arun Singhal, joint secretary, health and family welfare, told Hindustan Times.
• Singhal did not explain why the government allowed the colleges that it found “unfit” to continue.

In May 2016, the Supreme Court appointed a three-member Oversight Committee (OC), headed by former chief justice ML Lodha, to check alleged corruption in the Medical Council of India, which regulates such studies, and suggest ways to improve standards.

By the time the court panel was constituted, the MCI had completed inspecting 109 new colleges that had applied to admit medical students in 2016. The MCI allowed only 17 colleges.

But the panel reviewed the MCI’s decision and permitted 34 more colleges to take in students. This set the panel on a collision course with the MCI.

The panel allowed these colleges based on an “undertaking” from them that they will fulfill all criteria. It said if they fail a fresh inspection the colleges will be banned for two years and they will forfeit their deposits.

Following this, a joint four-member inspection team of the Oversight Committee and MCI visited these colleges between November and December and found them “grossly deficient in basic facilities”.

The MCI recommended banning 32 colleges. However, just a day before the court panel’s mandate was to run out on May 15, it reversed the MCI recommendations, permitting 26 colleges to admit students and suggesting fresh inspection of the remaining six.

In at least two instances, the committee overruled staff deficiencies by accepting the colleges’ plea that the staff had gone to exchange old banknotes after demonetisation.

In defence of its decision, the panel cited “numerous instances of violation” of inspection guidelines by the joint team.

The MCI dismissed the allegation.

“It will be unfair to say that MCI did not adhere to the OC guidelines. The MCI has engaged the assessors from the OC panel and OC recommended institution in every team,” said Jayshree Mehta, president of the MCI.

The court panel members didn’t respond to HT’s email about the ministry’s decision.

“We looked at the inspection report of the MCI and the OC’s comment on that and made a decision,” Singhal said.

Most of the private colleges called the ban discriminatory and illegal.

“Last year, the OC allowed 34 colleges to admit students and put in place a proper mechanism to inspect the facilities, but the MCI has grossly violated that process. It failed 32 colleges deliberately. It is witch-hunting,” a promoter of a private college said.

Students said they felt victimised.

“If the government thinks that these colleges don’t have facilities then we should be shifted to approved colleges immediately,” a student from a private college said.

They fear the ban will discourage colleges from improving facilities, impacting their studies.

Govt bans 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years

• The Union health ministry has banned 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years, overruling a Supreme Court panel that had cleared their alleged substandard facilities.
• The ministry also forfeited the colleges’ security deposit of Rs 2 crore each. It has, however, allowed 4,000 undergraduate students to continue studying at these institutes.
• “We based our decision on the inspection report which highlighted gross deficiency of facilities. But the decision will not impact students already studying,” Arun Singhal, joint secretary, health and family welfare, told Hindustan Times.
• Singhal did not explain why the government allowed the colleges that it found “unfit” to continue.

In May 2016, the Supreme Court appointed a three-member Oversight Committee (OC), headed by former chief justice ML Lodha, to check alleged corruption in the Medical Council of India, which regulates such studies, and suggest ways to improve standards.

By the time the court panel was constituted, the MCI had completed inspecting 109 new colleges that had applied to admit medical students in 2016. The MCI allowed only 17 colleges.

But the panel reviewed the MCI’s decision and permitted 34 more colleges to take in students. This set the panel on a collision course with the MCI.

The panel allowed these colleges based on an “undertaking” from them that they will fulfill all criteria. It said if they fail a fresh inspection the colleges will be banned for two years and they will forfeit their deposits.

Following this, a joint four-member inspection team of the Oversight Committee and MCI visited these colleges between November and December and found them “grossly deficient in basic facilities”.

The MCI recommended banning 32 colleges. However, just a day before the court panel’s mandate was to run out on May 15, it reversed the MCI recommendations, permitting 26 colleges to admit students and suggesting fresh inspection of the remaining six.

In at least two instances, the committee overruled staff deficiencies by accepting the colleges’ plea that the staff had gone to exchange old banknotes after demonetisation.

In defence of its decision, the panel cited “numerous instances of violation” of inspection guidelines by the joint team.

The MCI dismissed the allegation.

“It will be unfair to say that MCI did not adhere to the OC guidelines. The MCI has engaged the assessors from the OC panel and OC recommended institution in every team,” said Jayshree Mehta, president of the MCI.

The court panel members didn’t respond to HT’s email about the ministry’s decision.

“We looked at the inspection report of the MCI and the OC’s comment on that and made a decision,” Singhal said.

Most of the private colleges called the ban discriminatory and illegal.

“Last year, the OC allowed 34 colleges to admit students and put in place a proper mechanism to inspect the facilities, but the MCI has grossly violated that process. It failed 32 colleges deliberately. It is witch-hunting,” a promoter of a private college said.

Students said they felt victimised.

“If the government thinks that these colleges don’t have facilities then we should be shifted to approved colleges immediately,” a student from a private college said.



They fear the ban will discourage colleges from improving facilities, impacting their studies.

Govt bans 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years

• The Union health ministry has banned 32 private medical colleges from admitting students for two years, overruling a Supreme Court panel that had cleared their alleged substandard facilities.
• The ministry also forfeited the colleges’ security deposit of Rs 2 crore each. It has, however, allowed 4,000 undergraduate students to continue studying at these institutes.
• “We based our decision on the inspection report which highlighted gross deficiency of facilities. But the decision will not impact students already studying,” Arun Singhal, joint secretary, health and family welfare, told Hindustan Times.
• Singhal did not explain why the government allowed the colleges that it found “unfit” to continue.

In May 2016, the Supreme Court appointed a three-member Oversight Committee (OC), headed by former chief justice ML Lodha, to check alleged corruption in the Medical Council of India, which regulates such studies, and suggest ways to improve standards.

By the time the court panel was constituted, the MCI had completed inspecting 109 new colleges that had applied to admit medical students in 2016. The MCI allowed only 17 colleges.

But the panel reviewed the MCI’s decision and permitted 34 more colleges to take in students. This set the panel on a collision course with the MCI.

The panel allowed these colleges based on an “undertaking” from them that they will fulfill all criteria. It said if they fail a fresh inspection the colleges will be banned for two years and they will forfeit their deposits.

Following this, a joint four-member inspection team of the Oversight Committee and MCI visited these colleges between November and December and found them “grossly deficient in basic facilities”.

The MCI recommended banning 32 colleges. However, just a day before the court panel’s mandate was to run out on May 15, it reversed the MCI recommendations, permitting 26 colleges to admit students and suggesting fresh inspection of the remaining six.

In at least two instances, the committee overruled staff deficiencies by accepting the colleges’ plea that the staff had gone to exchange old banknotes after demonetisation.
In defence of its decision, the panel cited “numerous instances of violation” of inspection guidelines by the joint team.

The MCI dismissed the allegation.

“It will be unfair to say that MCI did not adhere to the OC guidelines. The MCI has engaged the assessors from the OC panel and OC recommended institution in every team,” said Jayshree Mehta, president of the MCI.

The court panel members didn’t respond to HT’s email about the ministry’s decision.

“We looked at the inspection report of the MCI and the OC’s comment on that and made a decision,” Singhal said.

Most of the private colleges called the ban discriminatory and illegal.

“Last year, the OC allowed 34 colleges to admit students and put in place a proper mechanism to inspect the facilities, but the MCI has grossly violated that process. It failed 32 colleges deliberately. It is witch-hunting,” a promoter of a private college said.

Students said they felt victimised.

“If the government thinks that these colleges don’t have facilities then we should be shifted to approved colleges immediately,” a student from a private college said.



They fear the ban will discourage colleges from improving facilities, impacting their studies.

New dental colleges to come up at 11 campuses across Maharashtra

Three-and-a-half decades after the last government dental college and hospital was established, the Maharashtra government is planning to start such institutions in state-run medical colleges.

Senior officials from the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) said they were considering new government dental colleges at the premises of 11 medical colleges in Pune, Dhule, Ambejogai (Beed), Latur, Nanded, Yavatmal, Akola, Chandrapur, Gondia, Miraj and Kolhapur.

A dental college has also been proposed at the Greenfield medical hub at Jalgaon, which will offer courses in medicine, dentistry, ayurveda, homeopathy, nursing and paramedics. With each dental college likely to have 100 seats, these facilities may have an intake of 1,200 seats for the Bachelors in Dentistry (BDS) course.

PG medical courses will have no quota this year in Haryana

Medical colleges in Haryana, as per the state government rules, will have no reservation for students belonging to the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes and backwards classes in admission to the postgraduate courses (MD/MS/PG Diploma and MDS) this year.

A proposal in November 2016 by Department of Medical Education and Research (DMER) suggesting reservation of seats for admission to the PG courses for the 2017-18 session, has been turned down by the state government of Haryana. Since there is not much time left for the new academic session, the government has decided that the issue must be examined in details before putting up orders the next academic year.

The decision was taken at a meeting held recently at the CM’s residence, which was attended, among others, by AG Baldev Raj Mahajan and Additional Chief Secretary (DMER) Dhanpat Singh.

Sources said the government had taken this decision on the opinion given by Advocate-General Baldev Raj Mahajan, who stated that since there were limited seats in the PG courses and no reservation had been provided in the state since 1971, the issues involved required a detailed examination.