Doctors and medical students staged protests across the country on Thursday against the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, alleging that it was “anti-poor”.
The protests were organised on the call of the IndianMedical Association (IMA).
As part of the protest action, copies of the proposedlegislation were burnt outside the IMA headquarters in Delhi and its 1,700branch offices. Students in medical colleges observed hunger strike against the”anti-poor” legislation.
The IMA will hold a “Delhi Andolan” on July 29,which includes a march by the medical fraternity from NirmanBhavan to JantarMantarto demonstrate the imperative need for the amendments in the Bill. The marchwill culminate with a ChhatraSansad (students’ parliament), IMA nationalpresident SantanuSen said.
The association said the government has failed to addressconcerns raised by the medical fraternity.
The Bill, if passed in its present form, will only legalisequackery by empowering the community health providers to practice medicine,endangering the lives of people, it alleged.
“The other clause includes provision to fix fee ofprivate medical colleges capped to 50 per cent of the seats has been furtherdiluted to framing guidelines only. Now, 100 per cent of the private medicalseats will be deregulated regarding the fee subject to non-binding guidelines.Medical education in the country will become expensive placing the lowersocio-economic groups in great disadvantage. “This effectively removespoor and middle class reckoning for such seats. However, lack of clarity onimplementation has jeopardised the decision itself,” R V Asokan, SecretaryGeneral of IMA, earlier said.
“IMA is convinced that NMC Bill 2019 requires seriousmind application by the Parliamentarians. It would strike the death knell ofmedical profession in the current format,” Sen said.
It provides for setting up of a National Medical Commission(NMC) in place of the Medical Council of India (MCI) and repeal of the IndianMedical Council Act, 1956. The Federation of Resident Doctors Association(FORDA) also threatened to launch a nationwide indefinite stir in protestagainst the Bill.
The demands include quashing of the provision of NationalLicentiate Examination (NLE) in the proposed National Medical Commission (NMC)Bill.
They have also written to President Ram NathKovind urginghim to advise the central government to withdraw the “black law”.The Bill was introduced in LokSabha on July22.