Upset with Delayed NEET PG Counselling, Resident Doctors write to Health Ministry, threaten protest

New Delhi: The recent decision of the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) postponing the counselling for National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test Postgraduate (NEET-PG) 2022 counselling is being highly criticized by the resident doctors, who have already written to the Union Health Minister and Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) in this regard.

In fact, referring to the delay in last year's counselling and the nationwide strike thereafter, the Federation of Resident Doctors' Association (FORDA) and Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) has warned the authorities for possible protest activities if the counselling does not get started at the earliest.

This comes after the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC), operative under the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Monday decided to reschedule the NEET PG counselling.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that issuing notification in this regard, MCC under the DGHS mentioned on its website that the counselling which was set to start from September 1 has been rescheduled considering that the National Medical Commission (NMC) is still in the process of issuing new Letters of Permission, LoPs to the medical colleges for this academic year.

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Therefore, the counselling has been delayed so that more MD, MS or PG Diploma seats can be added to the seat matrix accordingly. MCC had also announced that the revised schedule would be released later on its official website.

While the PG medical aspirants have been waiting for the commencement of the counselling since the publication of their results on June 1, further rescheduling of the counselling process is being heavily criticized by the medical fraternity. Aspirants have already started to express their anger and frustration over the MCC notice.

Resident Doctors' Association including FORDA and FAIMA have also come forward and they have written to the Union Health Ministry seeking expedition of the counselling process.

Pointing out that after the publication of results on June 1, 2022, the counselling process went to "indefinite halt", FORDA mentioned in its letter directed to the Health Minister, "Thereafter the process went to indefinite halt for a long duration and there was no official information regarding the counselling process till MCC released tentative schedule of the counselling process on 10th August, bringing some relief to young doctors. But unfortunately, getting us utter discontent, MCC released a notification stating postponement of counselling process just few days before the start of process i.e. on 29th August , 2022. And the reason stated for the delay is more aggrieving , it states that the NMC is in the process of issuing LoPs for the current academic year. It is very distasteful and disheartening knowing about such laid back attitude from a national government body ( NMC)."

"We fail to understand the reasons of such procedural delays and we stand highly disappointed with this unceremonious attitude of NMC leading to distress among aspirants and junior doctors. It is also highlighted that there has been a lot of chaos in past year leading to a month long protest due to similar indefinite delays in the counselling process . It is also mentioned that the academic session is already delayed by almost 4-5 months, delaying it any further is highly unfavourable not only for medical graduates but also for the health system of the nation," the association further stated.

At this outset, FORDA also pointed out how the examination was conducted against the demands of the aspirants who were seeking more time for preparation. The letter stated, "NEET PG 2022 was conducted on 21st May, 2022 under the heavy clouds of uncertainties as large number of aspirants demanded postponement of exam due to many known valid facts. But the respective authorities dismissed all sought of pleas with a reasoning to bring back normalcy in the medical education."

Requesting the Health Minister to take note of plight of young doctors & take necessary measures for expediting the NEET PG 2022 counselling, FORDA has warned the authorities about the initiation of strike. The association mentioned, "In case there happens any further delay in counselling process , then we will be forced to protest against such disrespect and dishonour towards medical education."

Similar requests have been made by the FAIMA Doctors Association as well, who recently wrote to the DGHS regarding the matter. In the letter dated 31.08.2022, FAIMA dropped the hint of a protest and stated, "The year 2021 saw a nationwide massive strike by resident doctors to expedite the process of NEET-PG 2021 Counselling. And now, history is about to repeat itself as the future of these budding doctors is at stake, and the concerned authorities are inciting students to repeal such actions by again delaying the counselling process."

The Association wrote in its letter, "As members of an organization who have always been committed to the betterment of the medical fraternity and patient welfare, we at the Federation of All India Medical Association are extremely shocked by the abrupt announcement of a delay in NEET PG 2022 Counselling by the governing authorities. According to an urgent notice issued by MCC of DGHS on 29.08.2022, NEET-PG Counselling, previously scheduled to begin on September 1, 2022, has now been postponed until further notice to issue the new LoPs for the current academic year."

"Upon the release of NEET-PG 2022 results within 10 days after the test was conducted candidates were falsely happy that they were finally qualified to be able to pursue their dream profession. However, they were unaware that the roadmap for conducting counselling had not been prepared yet. And it simply demonstrates how governing bodies slack off on such a noble and demanding profession," it added.

Referring to the anxiety of the aspirants, the association mentioned, "The thought of how many gruelling and precious years are spent by the poor NEET-PG aspirants to secure a place in their dream branch and how anxiously the parents await the day when their child becomes a specialist is extremely painful. It takes a lot of time dedication. sincerity, and sacrifice to crack this difficult exam. which is conducted once a year. There is no doubt that this exam takes a toll on the mental health of the candidates. In the end it's no different from playing with the lives of patients when we play with the future of these students, who will form the next generation of doctors for our country."

"Due to a delay in this counselling, the country is on the verge of its biggest medical crisis. The number of cases of COVID-19 is on the rise today. Having a delayed counselling process will result in a shortage of qualified doctors in our country, further compromising patient care. Already overworked doctors will experience physical and mental exhaustion. As a result of such irresponsibility and casual behaviour of concerned people in power towards young doctors, not only is the future of current NEET PG aspirants adversely affected, but it also demotivates the young generation from choosing this noble profession. Thus, we urge the concerned officials to expedite the process of NEET-PG Counseling 2022 without further delay and to release the official counselling schedule as soon as possible," it added.

Speaking to Medical Dialogues, Chief Advisor to National President of FAIMA, Dr Rafia Khan said, "Medicine is a noble profession and we as doctors stand to serve our country with full dedication, hard work and sincerity. Without counting the number of hours we put in to serve the sick patients, from skipping meals, to sleepless nights to seeing our loved ones sometimes after months. That's the level of dedication with which we work. Unfortunately, today our leaders have made such a casual attitude towards the issues which affect us the most! A NEET PG aspirant puts in years of his/her hard work to get become a qualified specialist to serve the nation."

"If we see the statistics, today India needs a large number of specialist doctors. But, such a prestigious examination, NEET PG which is conducted just once in a year and for which the aspirants wait for the whole year, sitting at home jobless to give their valuable time to their preparation, has now become a joke for everyone. A delayed NEET PG counseling can put the country at the worst medical crisis. Not only neet pg aspirants career is at stake but also such acts by our leaders, de-motivate young generation from taking up medicine," she added.

"Henceforth it is a request to the concerned authorities to expedite the process of NEET PG counseling for not only the benefit of our aspirants but also for the benefit of the patients," she further mentioned.

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