Issue cutoff on Foreign medical courses, HC tells MCI

CHENNAI: In the past 10 years, just 15-25% of doctors with foreign medical degrees cleared the mandatory Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE), conducted by the National Board of Examination (NBE) in India, said Justice N Kirubakaran. Therefore, the Madras High Court has prohibited Medical Council of India (MCI) and the Centre from issuing eligibility certificate to candidates with less than 80% marks in the qualifying examination for admission to medical colleges/universities in foreign countries.

When students with more than 95% in the qualifying examinations are powerless to get a medical college seat in the Nation, how can candidates with 50% marks in the qualifying exam are eligible for the foreign  institutions. Justice Kirubakaran looked into on a plea moved by Thamarai Selvan, a foreign medical degree holder seeking path to the MCI to issue certificate of provisional registration to enable him to process the Compulsory Rotatory Residential Internship in an approved medical college-hospital in the state and eventually issue permanent registration certificate on successful completion of CRRI.

The counsel also said,"One-time exemption was given for academic year 2018-19 since qualification in NEET was made mandatory by notification dated March 1, 2018 and the last date for registration was March 9. The candidates did not have sufficient time to prepare for the examination," Keeping submission on Note, the court said, "Health is very important for any human being and it is the duty of the governments to provide quality medical service to its subjects. For providing quality medical services, good doctors have to be made.During the hearing, counsel for MCI submitted that before introduction of NEET, the MCI had prescribed 50% as minimum marks in physics, chemistry and biology together for getting eligibility certificate and the same would continue this year. 

The making of a doctor or training given to a doctor commences from the stage of admission into medical college. Only those candidates with merits, which is usually determined based on academic excellence, have to be admitted in medical institutions. If less meritorious or non-meritorious students are allowed to join medical colleges, quality medical services could not be expected from them, as they may not be in a position to do so."