The Kerala Government Medical College Teachers’ Association (KGMCTA) has appealed to Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan to take steps to improve the quality of medical education in the country. It urged him to take stern measures to end rampant corruption in the medical education sector.
In a memorandum submitted to Dr. Harsh Vardhan, the KGMCTA suggested that a National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) be set as the benchmark for selecting students to both undergraduate as well as postgraduate medical courses. The NEET will ensure that only the meritorious students are allowed entry into the medical education sector. It will also end the corrupt system followed by some medical institutions, of allowing those paying capitation fee to study medical courses, the KGMCTA said.
The KGMCTA has also raised the demand that a Medical Grants Commission be established on a par with the University Grants Commission, to promote, finance, supervise, and monitor Medical Colleges. A Medical Grants Commission is necessary to establish medical colleges of uniform standards and also to regulate the service and pay conditions of the teaching faculty. The KGMCTA pointed out that till date, there had been no national consensus regarding the pay and service conditions of medical faculty in medical colleges.