Srinagar, October 06, 2021 (PPI-OT):In Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir, medical students protested in Srinagar against the Indian government’s decision to pool its MBBS (Bachelor of Medicine and a Bachelor of Surgery) seats in the All-India Quota (AIQ) from the current session.
A large number of medical students marched towards the Press Enclave in Srinagar against the move. The protesting students slammed the Indian government for not thinking about the future of locals and instead trying to brighten the career of Indian students.
The Kashmiri aspiring doctors who applied for NEET PG (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test postgraduate) admissions are worried that the new policy will take away over 70% of the seats from the occupied territory. NEET PG 2021 was conducted on September 11 and two weeks later India’s Medical Council Committee notification stated that the IIOJK region is likely to participate in AIQ from this year.
The protesting students demanded the revocation of the order which they termed as unjustified and against the aspirations and sentiments of people of IIOJK. They said the Indian government’s decision has come as a big shock as 70% doctors who will be appointed in IIOJK will be non-locals.
On the other hand, the IIOJK Medical Council is defunct since its chairman Dr Saleem-ur-Rehman completed his three-year tenure in April, this year. The doctors are facing hardships in getting mandatory certification while people have no avenue to get their complaints investigated and grievances redressed.
Amid the delay in the constitution of the new Body of the Council, some medical professionals working in local private hospitals or in other countries say they are at the verge of leaving their jobs as they are not able to get their registrations done. Similarly, many more pass-outs from medical institutes are without registration and verification rendering them ill-equipped to get a job or admission to an institute for higher qualification.
Notably, the Council has a mandate to register medical professionals, issue certificates of registration, vet their qualifications and degrees, promote and certify continuous medical education, verify credentials claimed by professionals and issue certificates of Good Standing. The Council is also supposed to investigate and provide a redressal mechanism for grievances. Meanwhile, the Doctors Association of Kashmir (DAK) has also written to the authorities and demanded that the Council be made functional.
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