MCI is firm on making screening test mandatory for students doing medical graduation from US, UK too


By Vikas Vaidya


The Medical Council of India (MCI) is firm on making screening test mandatory for students completing medical graduation from five countries including US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The then Board of Governors of MCI in the year 2012 had surprisingly given exemption to the students doing medical graduation in these countries, from screening test.
The question of equivalence of foreign medical qualifications with those conferred by the Indian Universities through the recognized medical institutions had been a huge issue of controversy and problems since quite some time. The matter has been hugely litigated and finally in the year 2001 on the recommendations of the then MCI, an appropriate amendment came to be incorporated in the Indian medical Council Act, 1956, whereby section 13 of the said Act, was amended by including two sub-clauses namely 13(a) and (b) respectively.
By the said amendment a ‘screening test’ came to be provided which was to be conducted by the National Board of Examination (NBE). Any Indian citizen possessing any foreign medical undergraduate qualification, was eligible to appear for the said screening test and upon clearance is required to complete one year rotating internship at a recognized medical school after procuring provisional registration with the concerned State Medical Council. On satisfactory completion of the said internship the said graduate possessing foreign medical qualification becomes entitled for a permanent registration with the concerned state medical council as a registered medical practitioner.
The National Board of Examinations (NBE) has been conducting computer-based Foreign Medical Graduate examination (FMGE), popularly known as screening test, in June and December every year which was introduced through screening test regulations 2002.
Between 2012 and 2014 academic years, 49 Indian students who completed their medical course in 15 colleges appeared for the test of which 16 cleared the highly difficult test registering 32.7 pass percentage. Bangla Desh is also a favourite destination. China is the most preferred country for Indian medical aspirants apart from the Russia and other USSR nations.
However, the Government of India, through its Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, overruling the recommendations of the (MCI) by a amended notification accorded unilateral recognition to postgraduate qualifications that came to be conferred by the conferring institutions in USA, Canada, England, Australia and New Zealand respectively in the year 2008.
In continuation of the said notification, MCI issued notification in the year 2012, whereby Indian citizens possessing graduate and postgraduate qualifications conferred by the said five countries were granted immunity from the screening test.
In the General Body Meeting of the MCI held recently, Dr. Vedprakash Mishra, the Chairman of the Academic Committee of MCI raised the issue as to whether the parent provisions in the Indian Medical Council Act, be given a go bye through issuance of a executive notification as has been done in 2012?
When contacted Dr. Mishra emphatically stated that the mute question is that provisions of the parent act which is a parliamentary enactment cannot be negated or bypassed  through issuance of an executive order.  Resultantly the notification issued in the year 2012 by the Board of Governors being inconsistent with the provisions included at section 13 of the IMC Act, 1956 turns out to be ab-initio void and untenable and hence needs to be annulled forthwith and declared non-est from the date of its notification stated Dr. Mishra.


How Screening test makes difference?


It one have a look at chart below, one could find that in screening test nearly less than 25 per cent students passed. It means that this test is the tough one. It also shows that students studying abroad does not mean that they are above their counterparts in India. It does mean that MCI’s argument of making the test mandatory is valid

Some of the countries where students studied medical education, appeared in screening test and number of them cleared

Countries                  students appeared        passed
Russia Federation        5950                          1094
Ukraine                       3520                            671
China                          11,825                        2239
Nepal                            3163                          670
Pakistan                             49                            16
Bangla Desh        626            193           

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

foreign returned MBBS students not to be admitted in PG in State quota

· By Vikas Vaidya Though Medical Council of India (MCI) has relaxed the rule of giving Eligibility Certificate for the students wanting to study in foreign countries, the troubles have not ended so far. Now Maharashtra Government has refused to give admission in the State quota of Post Graduate intake. Due to severe shortage of MBBS seats in the country, most of the Indian students are opting for medical colleges in China, Russia, Central America, the Philippines among others every year. Getting the degree in these countries is relatively cheaper. A student can complete MBBS abroad in less than Rs 30 lakh. In the state, the student has to pay, apart from the fee, a donation of up to Rs 80 lakh to get a seat in management quota. All this totals to Rs 1.5 crore. Earliers these students had to obtain eligibility certificate from MCI. This data has been obtained from Board of Intermediate Education to verify the age and qualifications for doing MBBS in foreign countries. Now MCI has ...
Read more

City Students develop Live GPS Tracking system - FLEET

Image
City Students develop Live GPS Tracking system - FLEET   Satyajeet Kanetkar, Nilesh Kolharkar, Kapil Kokarde, Sushil Kewlani and Meeta Kalashikar along with the prize.   By Vikas Vaidya Do you remember, in one of the movies of Transporter movie series, heroine has a mobile ladden with Global Positioning System (GPS). The villain keep a track on the path of heroine wherever she goes. The hero realises it and finally throws the mobile outside the car resisting villains from approaching them. On the same lines, a group of students developed GPS Tracking System. This can track the location of mobile phones using GPS Technology. GPS satellites help in positioning of the different GPS receivers on the surface of the earth. Locations are represented in the form of geographical coordinates called Latitudes and Longitudes. Satyajeet Kanetkar, Nilesh Kolharkar, Kapil Kokarde, Sushil Kewlani developed this project under the guidance of Meeta Kalashikar. The project in it's cu...
Read more

Dr Vilas Dangre advises "Don’t humiliate yourself by demanding to practice allopathy"

Image
By Vikas Vaidya Dr Vilas Dangre, a leading Homoeopath and Bhishmacharya in the field of Homoeopathy on Sunday warned Homoeopaths not to lower down their status by demanding to practice allopathy. The Maharashtra branch of Homoeopathic Medical Association of India (HMAI) a national organisation has conducted a scientific seminar for Homoeopathic doctors and students on diseases of children named ‘Pediatric prescribing’ on Sunday at Ahilyadevi Sabhgruha, Dhantoli. Mayor Anil Sole was chief guest,  leading Homoeopath of Mumbai Dr Parinaz Humranwala was guest of honour. Dr Vilas Dangre presided over the function. Dr Rajan Kalpande, President Maharashtra HMAI, Dr Murlidhar Idole, Secretary were seated on the dais. Dr Dangre said, “By demanding that allopathy practice should be allowed, we, the Homoeopaths are bringing down our level. The Homoeopathy is based on full scientific research. The remedies of all diseases are in Homoeopathy. I shall not object if we are de...
Read more