Unable to crack the whip on medical students who refuse to take up the mandatory rural service, the State government has decided to impose the rule only for those who have secured seats under the government quota. This comes at a time when the Health Department is struggling to fill over 1,400 posts in its village health centres.
The proposal to amend the Karnataka Compulsory Service Training by Candidates Completed Medical Courses Act, 2012, has been approved by the State Cabinet and is likely to be passed during the ongoing session of the State legislature. Previously, this service rule applied to all medical graduates, including those who had obtained seats under NRI and management quotas. However, students approached the court and obtained a stay on it.
Principal Secretary, Health and Family Welfare, Shalini Rajneesh told The Hindu that the changed rule would not come in the way of their efforts to recruit doctors for rural postings. “The vacancies are high in the specialists category. It will be a problem of plenty if all MBBS graduates are made to take up rural service. That is why we are amending the rule so that there will be a regular flow of doctors as government-quota students cannot forgo rural service,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Health Department is also recruiting 1,430 doctors through the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC). According to a gazette notification issued on May 24, applications will be called for 1,065 specialist doctors and 365 general duty medical officers (GDMOs).
Despite enhanced salaries and incentives, there are not many takers for medical posts in the department. The department’s previous recruitment drive conducted through the KPSC in 2015 validated this. Of the 1,122 applicants, only 597 had reported for duty. In 2012, although applications had been called for 600 posts of specialist, a mere 75 joined duty.
After 2005, although the department has been recruiting through the KPSC once in two years, the response has always been poor. With low pay scale being a major grouse that have kept medical graduates from joining State-run hospitals, the department hiked the salaries in July 2015.
“Salary is not an issue now. An honorarium of ₹1.2 lakh has been fixed even for specialists on contract. Absence of a conducive atmosphere that includes assault by patients’ relatives and harassment by followers of local politicians has created a sense of fear among doctors,” said a senior office-bearer of the Karnataka Government Medical Officers’ Association.
He said doctors were ready to work for even lower salaries in a small hospital in urban areas rather than a taluk hospital or primary health centre. Inadequate infrastructure in rural hospitals and specialists having to also function as casualty medical officers are the main reasons for the dismally poor response, he said, and added that these issues had to be set right now.
3,274 paramedics to be recruited
In a special recruitment drive, the Health Department will recruit 3,274 paramedics, including 1,659 junior health assistants and 736 nurses with Diploma in Nursing, and 245 nurses with B.Sc. Nursing. Interested candidates may apply online before June 30. More details are available on www.karhfw.gov.in
