Most probably taking note of the recent report ‘India needs 4 Lakh more doctors in India by 2022 to achieve WHO standard, the Union Health Ministry has clamped down on doctors, who intend to settle aboard after pursuing higher studies there, especially in the United States of America. Since India is grappling with a severe shortage of doctors, Government will no longer issue no objection certificates to doctors in India who wish to settle aboard permanently.
The Union Health Ministry conveyed to the Bombay High Court that “the Government cannot be expected to facilitate the wish of the doctors from India to permanently settle abroad, by certifying that their services are not required by the country, when the country is grappling with a severe shortage of doctors”.
Background
On 21st April, 2016, the Union Health Ministry submitted an affidavit to the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court to counter a petition filed by the Central Maharashtra Resident Doctors Association. In their petition the doctors had challenged a Government decision of August 2015 through which the Government stopped issuing a Non-Obligation to return to India (NORI)certificate to doctors studying in the US, except to those who had attained the age of 65 and above.
According to the lawyers of the doctors association the decision is an insult to human rights and violates the right to life equality of doctors. In January, the High Court bench had observed that petition had been pending since last August with no response from the Government so it had granted a last chance for the Centre to register its response.
Present situation
The Centre in order to deal with the present complexity claimed that it had taken a policy decision in 2011 to stop NORI certificates that serve as a waiver to mandatory rule in the US of a two-year return to the home country for students on a visitor exchange study programme on anExceptional Need Certificate (ENC) or “Statement Of Need (SON)” for further specialized studies not available in India.
The Ministry emphasized that “the NORI is a US Homeland security requirement and India Government is not bound under the Constitution to issue such certificates as it goes against the public health”.
According to the Ministry the denial of NORI was not violating any fundamental rights of doctors, nor was it unlawful or discriminatory since the waiver is to rule formed by the US for J-1 visa holders on exchange visitor programme.
It is imperative here to mention that doctors in India to citizen ratio in India is 1:1,700, however, WHO stipulates a minimum ratio of 1:1,000; India had, as on March 2015, 420 medical colleges out of which 200 college are run by the Government and rest 220 college are run privately.
Moreover, it would be appropriate, while concluding the passage, to quote Dr. Gautam Sen, former member of Medical Council of India, “the Government should not look at the numbers of doctors but at the kind of doctors we need”.
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