Ministry of Health directs states for fresh elections of Medical Council of India

The council was heavily criticised by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Health for failing to fulfil any of its mandates.

Following recommendations of the committee, in March, the Union Health Ministry had approved amendments to the NMC Bill, including removing the contentious provision of "bridge course", which would have allowed practitioners of alternative medicines to pursue allopathy, after stiff resistance from the IMA and the opposition.

The Bill was then sent to the Cabinet and after its approval to Parliament.

The Health Ministry had replaced the provisions of the National Licentiate Examination with a 'Common Final Year MBBS Exam'.

It also replaced the term National Licentiate Examination (NLE) with the National Exit Test (NEXT).

The ministry had also amended a section to provide for a uniform National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and counselling at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

Stating that the proposed NLE would put "undue stress" on students, a parliamentary standing committee had recommended that the examination be integrated with the final year MBBS examination and be conducted "at the state-level".