Order upheld on private nurses jobs

Chennai: The Madras high court has upheld a state government order which stipulated that the nurses who have studied in private nursing colleges were also entitled to appointment as nurses in government hospitals and primary health centres.

Allowing a batch of appeals from the private nursing candidates and the health department, a division bench comprising Chief Justice R.K. Agrawal and Justice M. Sathyanarayanan set aside an order of a single judge, which quashed the G.O. dated January 18, 2012.

The G.O. stated that in future, all vacant posts of nurses in all government medical institutions shall be filled up from among the trained nurses in the government institutions and government-approved private nursing institutions by conducting an examination by the Medical Services Recruitment Board, duly following the rule of reservation.

The bench said as rightly pointed out by additional advocate general P.H. Arvind Pandian, once doctors, who studied in government-run medical colleges as well as private medical colleges were allowed to compete for selection to public employment, it cannot be stated that students/nurses who studied in government-run institutions alone were eligible to compete for public employment and it belies logic and common sense.

This court was of the considered opinion that the impugned G.O. was in consonance with the statutory rules viz., Madras Medical Service Subordinate Rules and it does not offend Articles 14 and 16 of the Constitution.

Nurses, who had done their study and training in government and private institutions were allowed to compete and persons with merit and ability alone will be selected and their training and expertise were ultimately going to benefit the patients, who were taking treatment in government hospital and hospitals run by local bodies.

“Judicial notice is also be taken on that most of such patients are poor and hailing from lower strata of society and ultimately, they are going to benefited,” the bench added.