Telangana: Rural duty for PG medical graduates to go

Hyderabad: The Telangana state government is all set to scrap the mandatory one-year rural service rule for PG medical graduates for permanent under the TS Medical Registration Act. Earlier, the mandatory one-year rural service rule for MBBS graduates to be eligible for PG medical admissions was also scrapped. Health minister C. Laxma Reddy told the Legislative Assembly on Wednesday that the government was spending Rs 60 crore per year on stipend to PG medical graduates for rural service but it was not serving the intended purpose with students not taking rural service seriously and skipping duties.

“Nearly 900 PG medical students are being engaged to serve in rural areas every year. However, the government is receiving complaints against students that they are not taking the job seriously. It has become a namesake rural service. While some are skipping duties under one pretext or the other, some are leaving hospital soon after registering attendance. The government is spending Rs 60 crore on stipend for them.The government plans to recruit fulltime doctors in hospitals instead of wasting this Rs 60 crore,” Mr Reddy said.

He said that the government needs to amend the Act to relax the norms and would try to pass the Amendment in the ongoing Budget session after consulting the CM. Mr Reddy said that 700 seats in MBBS and 221 seats in PG medical courses have been increased in state since the formation of Telangana state. He added two colleges were permitted in government sector, of which one was in Mahbubnagar (150 seats) and ESI Medical College, Sanathnagar (100 seats) and three private colleges getting 150 seats each, totalling 450 seats.