Medical students began an indefinite hunger strike in front of the Raj Bhavan on Sunday evening in protest against the Central Government’s National Medical Commission Bill which was tabled in the Parliament.
The bill which seeks to allow practitioners of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy, to practice modern medicine once they complete a short term “bridge” course. According to the protesting medical students, the bill will only aid in the increase in number of quacks.
“The Central Government should not pass this bill, which will lead to large scale corruption in the health sector. From Monday, there will be protests across all Medical Colleges in the state. From January 2, there will be nation-wide protests,” said E.K.Ummar, State President of the Indian Medical Association (IMA).
The IMA, in a statement, said that the bill is aimed at bringing in doctors in involved in alternative medical practices into modern medicine sector through the backdoor. The IMA will provide full support to the protest of the medical students.
Health Minister K.K.Shylaja said in a statement that the NMC Bill will lead to commercialisation of medical colleges. The increase in number of nominated members in the new commission can cause more decision that could hurt the health sector. The existing council had a representative of the state. Now even that will cease to exist. The new bill will aid privatisation and corruption. Private managements can now decide the number of seats in their colleges, without any controls. The Central Government should withdraw this bill, said the minister.
