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Latest News |
| 18th
Sep 2010 / Times of India / Mumbai Edition |
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Common exit test for MBBS gradss
Cant Treat Patients Without Clearing Exam: MCI
New Delhi: Those intending to become doctors and treat
patients may soon have to clear a common exit test after
getting the MBBS degree from medical colleges.
The regulating body, Medical Council of India (MCI), has
given a statutory recommendation for a mandatory exit
test, which is under active consideration of the health
ministry, the Supreme Court was informed on Friday.
Considering the sensitive nature of the profession dealing
with life and death and keeping in mind varying standards
of education in medical colleges, MCI has proposed a common
exit examination for MBBS pass-outs intending to become
doctors and treat patients, Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam
told a Bench of Justices R V Raveendran and H L Gokhale.
This recommendation of the MCI was to standardize the
skills of doctors, said the regulatory body’s counsel
senior advocate Amarendra Saran supplementing the arguments
of the health ministry advanced through the SG. This is
in line with the decision of the Bar Council of India
(BCI) making it mandatory for law graduates to clear a
test to be able to practice in courts.
Importantly, both Subramaniam and MCI counsel, senior
advocate Amarendra Saran, informed the bench that very
soon a notification would be issued to put in place a
single window admission test for filling post-graduate
course seats in all private and government medical colleges
from the next academic session (2011-12 ).
This would ease the tension and trouble of thousands of
students competing for few PG seats, for which they have
to travel to different places to appear in entrance examinations
for PG courses of different colleges. Clashing of the
dates of examination used to add to the woes of the students.
But, these will be a thing of past from next year, thanks
to the common entrance test for PG seats in all private
and government medical colleges.
However, the joint attempt of the MCI and the government
to push through the common admission test for MBBS courses
in private and government medical colleges did not get
the stamp of approval from the apex court, which said
it could not do so without getting the responses from
the state governments.
The reluctance of the SC stemmed from the fact that Tamil
Nadu, which has a special law for the purpose that has
received Presidents assent, had strongly objected to the
common admission test for MBBS across the country. We
do not know which all states will object to this and how
the students, a volatile community, would react to this
proposal. So, let the Centre put before us the proposal
and we will seek the response of the state governments,
the bench said.
The SG agreed and said though the health ministry was
carrying out the task of achieving a consensus among the
states for a single window admission test for MBBS courses,
it would be easier and expeditious if the apex court helped
through the judicial process to achieve the goal that
would benefit the entire community of students aspiring
to be doctors. The SC has given a weeks time to place
the proposal before it for issuance of notices to the
state governments to elicit their response.
BITTER PILL
The Medical Council of India’s recommendation for
a mandatory exit test is under the active consideration
of the health ministry Move aims at standardizing skills
of doctors. The medical apex body will issue notice to
put in place a single window admission test for PG seats
in all medical colleges from 2001.
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