Gujarat: Medical education fraternity opposes draft PG admission regulations

AHMEDABAD: The draft of Postgraduate Medical Education Regulations 2021 has met with stiff opposition by the medical education fraternity in Gujarat. Experts cited that if the proposal sees light of the day in its current form, the power of the state would be undermined. It may also lead to reduction of PG seats for Gujarat students.
A provision of the draft PG regulations aims to centralise and designate the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India as the designated authority for counselling for state quota seats. Currently, counselling for UG and PG medical seats is done by state-appointed admission committees.
“Different states have their own quota for admission of students. The new regulation aims to do away with the role of states in this regard. This could lead to a decline in the number of seats in the state,” said an expert in the medical field.
In Gujarat, there are 2,287 seats for PG courses in state quota that may be impacted by the proposed regulations, said sources.
“All these years the PG medical admission process has been running smoothly and there seems to be no reason for changing this. In states like Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana the quota depends on the area where the PG medical seats lie,” said an academician in the medical field.
The academician said that while the move is being opposed by many non-BJP states while BJP ruled states may not oppose it openly even if its wrests their powers in the matter of PG medical admissions.
There shall be a common counseling for admission in all Medical Educational Institutions to all Postgraduate Broad-Specialty courses (Diploma/ MD/ MS) on the basis of merit list of the National Exit Test and to all Postgraduate Super-Specialty courses (DM/MCh) on the basis of merit list of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, as per the draft.
“The designated authority for counselling for all the postgraduate broad specialty seats in the country for eligible institutions under the National Medical Commission (both the 50% All India Quota seats of the contributing states and the 50% State Quota seats including all applicable reservations) shall be the Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India,” as per the draft.
The draft, proposed by the National Medical Council (NMC), also aims to introduce licentiate examination called the National Exit Test (NeXT) for enrolment in medical registers that could replace NEET for admission to PG courses.