5000+ appointments fraudulently validated by NMC! Doctors allege, demand Action
Faculty Recruitment
New Delhi: Alleging major violations in the medical college faculty recruitment norms, the doctors have urged the National Medical Commission (NMC) to take action in this regard.
The doctors under the United Doctors' Front (UDF) have highlighted several violations of faculty recruitment and promotion norms including the issue of wrongful consideration of teaching experience during PhD tenure and illegal appointment of part-time PhD holders as medical faculties.
Writing to the NMC Secretary, the association has demanded immediate scrutiny of faculty appointments, revocation of illegally appointed faculty positions, strict enforcement of UGC and NMC norms, and legal action against colleges violating these norms.
Apart from this, the association has also urged the Apex Medical Commission to remove MSc degree holders from MBBS education and has opposed the idea of the transition period, which was indicated by NMC in the Draft TEQ rules 2024.
"These violations have compromised the integrity of medical education and faculty recruitment, necessitating immediate corrective action," the letter UDF National General Secretary Dr. Arun Kumar mentioned.
Also Read: NMC proposes changes in TEQ regulations- here's how doctors, non-medical teachers react
Wrongful Consideration of Teaching Experience During Ph.D:
The doctors pointed out that as per the University Grants Commission (UGC) and NMC regulations, the teaching experience gained during PhD tenure cannot be counted towards faculty appointment. However, the association mentioned how despite this rule, numerous candidates have been illegally appointed and promoted based on their Ph.D tenure, violating established guidelines.
As per UDF, an estimated 5000+ appointments have been fraudulently validated by NMC across multiple medical institutes.
Part-time PhD Holders Illegally Appointed as Medical Faculty:
The association pointed out that the UGC regulations explicitly mandate that a PhD must be pursued as a regular full-time course to be considered valid for faculty positions. Despite this, many individuals holding part-time PhD degrees before 2016 have been appointed to faculty positions, even in core clinical subjects.
UDF mentioned that the misinterpretation of UGC regulations before 2018 led to a large-scale influx of ineligible faculty into medical colleges.
Violation of Faculty Promotion Norms:
The association pointed out that as per NMC norms, only MD/MS degree holders with four years of experience as Assistant Professors and one year of Residency are eligible for promotion to Associate Professor. However, the PhD holders have been directly promoted without fulfilling this mandatory tenure requirement.
It alleged that many faculty members have been appointed without proper verification of leave records, employment history, and full-time enrollment during the PhD tenure.
Regulatory Lapses:
Apart from this, the doctors highlighted several medical institutes that have appointed faculty members who do not meet the eligibility criteria, leading to widespread dilution of faculty standards.
M.Sc-PhD holders, who were initially working as technicians, have now been promoted to faculty members without fulfilling NMC-mandated qualifications.
Pointing out that before 2009, UGC had already established that PhD tenure cannot be counted as teaching experience, UDF highlighted that despite this NMC continues to validate such appointments.
NMC Order:
The National Medical Commission (NMC) exempted all ineligible faculty members appointed before February 14, 2022, from scrutiny, effectively legalizing past irregularities. UDF alleged that this move contradicted fairness, meritocracy, and transparency in medical faculty recruitment.
CBME Curriculum and Non-Medical Teachers in Senior Positions:
The association highlighted that the Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) curriculum emphasizes early clinical exposure, which integrates clinical and basic sciences.
"Having non-medical teachers hold senior positions in foundational subjects contradicts CBME objectives. These roles require not just theoretical expertise but also clinical application, which non-medical practitioners lack. Non-medical faculty members are unable to effectively correlate basic sciences with clinical practice, resulting in substandard medical education," the association mentioned.
Inclusion of Non-Medical Teachers (MSc PhD Holders) in MBBS Education:
The association pointed out that the CBME curriculum requires clinical correlation, which only MBBS-MD qualified faculty can effectively provide and argued that neglecting the clinical orientation of basic sciences (Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, and Pharmacology) degrades the quality of medical education.
"Many non-medical faculty members hold distance Ph.D. degrees that do not conform to NMC/MCI standards, leading to fraudulent faculty appointments," UDF alleged.
Legal Violations:
The doctors alleged that PhD tenure cannot be counted as teaching experience and only full-time PhDs are valid for faculty positions. It highlighted that the NMC requires a minimum of four years as Assistant Professor before promotion, which has been bypassed and faculty members have been appointed without proper verification of full-time PhD enrollment, violating recruitment policies.
It also highlighted the disparity in promotion policies and pointed out how MD/MS candidates serve four years before promotion, whereas PhD holders have been directly promoted, creating an unfair advantage.
UDF referred to the Kerala High Court's order in the case of Priya Varghese, where the Court underscored the critical importance of adhering to UGC norms regarding teaching experience. In that order, the Court ruled that periods spent on research and non-teaching assignments cannot be counted as teaching experience, leading to the revocation of Ms. Varghese's appointment as Associate Professor at Kannur University.
The association pointed out that this sets a significant precedent, reinforcing the necessity for strict compliance with UGC and NMC regulations to maintain the integrity of academic appointments.
They demanded a detailed audit of faculty appointments over the past 15 years to verify PhD status, leave records, and full-time employment, and demanded disqualification and removal of any faculty member appointed based on part-time PhDs or wrongfully counted teaching experience.
It has demanded strict enforcement of UGC and NMC norms and a new directive mandating compliance with faculty eligibility criteria to ensure only full-time PhD holders are considered.
The association has demanded that MBBS students must be trained by MBBS-MD qualified teachers only and claimed that non-medical faculty must be phased out immediately, without further dilution of medical education.
"Institutions guilty of fraudulent faculty appointments must face strict legal consequences," it added in the letter, adding that in line with NMC's public notice dated 30.01.2025, strict action must be taken against individuals and institutes violating faculty recruitment norms.
"The continued violation of faculty recruitment norms in medical colleges has severely compromised the quality of medical education in India. The February 14, 2022, exemption order by NMC effectively legalizes fraud and promotes systemic corruption in faculty recruitment," it added in the letter, urging NMC to take immediate action and conduct a high-level inquiry.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that releasing the Draft TEQ 2024 Regulations, NMC specified that the non-medical teachers could work as senior residents and faculties in medical colleges to teach three subjects including Anatomy, Biochemistry, and Physiology. However, it also specified that to teach these subjects in medical colleges, it is mandatory for the non-medical colleges to have an MSc and PhD degrees in these specialities.
Further, NMC also clarified in the Draft TEQ 2024 that the teachers with Medical MSc Degrees would be eligible for appointment as Senior Residents and Faculties (Assistant Professor and beyond) to teach these Broad speciality subjects during the "transitional period".
Defining the "transition period", NMC has mentioned in the Draft that in a speciality (subject) if enough faculty having qualifications of that speciality are not available, one with related qualifications and training/experience is made eligible to become faculty of that speciality for limited period till adequate number of faculty with qualification of such speciality are available. NMC has specified that this limited period is called a "transition period" and conditions required to be fulfilled for his will be called transition period criteria.
The Commission has also mentioned that NMC will decide the duration of the transition period based on the recommendations by the Post Graduate Medical Educational Board (PGMEB).
"In several colleges, even BSc degree holders who are pursuing their master's degree via distant mode are working as tutors in medical colleges. Private medical colleges are always looking for options that would cost them less money," said Dr. Arun Kumar, the National General Secretary of UDF.
Further pointing out that the BSc or MSc holders do not have clinical experience, he added, "This way, the quality of medical education is being compromised. How these people, who have only studied the theory, can be fit to educate a doctor?"
Dr. Kumar further pointed out that as per UGC guidelines, part-time PhD holders are not eligible and alleged that despite these guidelines, such part-time PhD holders are being appointed. He also questioned how the tenure of regular PhD students can be counted as experience.
Mentioning that UDF has urged NMC to take action, Dr. Kumar added that a copy of the letter has also been sent to the UGC Chairperson and the Union Education Minister.
Also Read: What after transition period? Medical MSc Degree Teachers decry NMC Draft TEQ Rules
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