Hyderabad: Medical students of the 2017 and 2018 batch are furious at Telangana State Medical Council (TSMC) for not registering undergraduate, postgraduate degrees and additional qualifications without completing the mandatory senior residency for a period of one year. The state government had in 2018 revoked the condition, which involved the service at any government institution.
“Some of the 2017 batch students have not served the senior residency due to personal reasons. Despite the government omitting the condition in 2018, the successful students are not getting their degrees registered with the TSMC,” explained Dr K. Mahesh Kumar, president, Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association. Even though there is no such requirement, those students who are now ready to do senior residency are not provided an opportunity, he added.
Also, Telangana-based students of the 2018 batch who pursued higher studies in other states have been asked to submit an NOC from their respective states to the TSMC. “Those students went to other states to pursue their PG and not to practice, hence the question of registration with the respective states’ medical councils does not arise,” said Dr Kumar.
Before the Telangana Medical Practitioners Act was amended in 2018, UG students were required to complete a mandatory rural service while PG students had to do senior residency for a period of one year for permanent registration of their degrees.
Dr Kumar added that TSMC’s denial is resulting in vacancies when it was imperative to strengthen the workforce considering the potential Covid-19 third wave.
