Hyderabad HC to Medical Council of India: Why minimum age 17 for MBBS?

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad High Court has suggested that the Centre and the Medical Council of India revisit rules governing MBBS and do away with the criteria of minimum age of 17 years for getting admission into the course.

Justice Suresh Kumar Kait was allowing a petition by Vanama Sri Venkata Dheeraj seeking to declare the action of the MCI in rejecting him an eligibility certificate to attend the screening test of the National Board of Examination on the grounds of not being 17 when he joined the MBBS course.

Counsel for the petitioner Y. Balaji told the court that the date of birth of his client was September 13, 1992, and he had taken his SSC exam when he was 13 with the permission of the erstwhile AP government in 2005 as a private candidate. Later, he completed his Intermediate in 2007 and appeared for Eamcet in 2007. However, he could not succeed.