Join service or pay Rs 50 lakh: TN cracks whip on specialist doctors skipping bond service

Doctors who pursue their medical education from Government medical colleges need to give an undertaking at the time of admission that they would serve the Government after completing their studies. As per the rules, if the doctors opt not to join service, they need to surrender the bond amount mentioned in the undertaking instead.

However, even though the non-service PG students had signed the undertaking while taking admission in Government medical colleges, several students belonging from other states leave Tamil Nadu after finishing their studies. Rules dictate that these students need to pay the bond amount as promised.

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Accordingly, Director of the DME, Narayana Prasad has written letters to the deans of government medical colleges citing the cases of 112 doctors who had completed the higher specialty courses in 2021 and chose to not take up government service during the recent online transfer counseling, adds IANS.

The Hindu in an earlier media report had mentioned that how several DM/M.Ch candidates hailing from outside of Tamil Nadu, even after pursuing their education in the Government medical colleges of the State in 2020, didn't attend the counseling held for posting on July 30.

Even though vacancies were available in their specialty departments in government medical colleges, many didn't opt and submitted not willing/not opted in the proforma.

According to the Tamil Nadu government norms, doctors who have completed specialty courses from government medical colleges and those who are not in government service will have to pay a bond amount that was agreed upon during their admission.

Prasad further wrote in his letter that the doctors were unwilling to work in Tamil Nadu government service and have failed to take up postings available in their specialty department in government medical colleges.

The DME has thus mentioned that this showed their unwillingness to work in Tamil Nadu Medical Service for fulfilling their bond conditions.

Thus, the deans to recover the bond amount Prasad also urged to issue a show-cause notice as a first step.

The directorate has also requested the deans for obtaining an undertaking from the doctors through their head of the departments saying that even though vacancies were available they had not opted for the postings and as per the bond, they are liable to pay Rs 50 lakh as the bond amount.

"Candidates who leave without completing their bond service return after two or three years saying that they were not given appointments," he told The Hindu.

The bond amount, according to the letter has to be recovered through the Revenue recovery act with immediate effect. The DME has directed the deans to send an action taken report within August 31 on this issue.

All the super-specialty seats in Tamil Nadu is filled by the Director-General of Health Services under the All India Quota and a bond are mandatory for non-service doctors.

The Madras High Court on October 6, 2020, ordered that postgraduate medical students admitted under the All India Quota have to compulsorily serve the state government for a period of two years.

While speaking to IANS, Prasad said: "The state has reduced the bond amount from of Rs 2 crore which was till last year to Rs 50 lakh now. The doctors opted out of serving the state government even after there were vacancies during the counseling. The government will take strict action against the erring doctors and have already written to the deans of government medical colleges to produce an action taken report before August 31."

He also expressed unhappiness that the doctors did not serve the government even during the Covid period.