Karnataka: Soon all Autonomous Medical Colleges, Super-speciality institutes to Have Common By-Laws

Bengaluru: Bringing uniformity, the Karnataka Medical Education Department has come out with common by-laws for all autonomous medical colleges and super-speciality institutes under its purview.

Before this, there were separate set of by-laws for each of the 22 autonomous colleges and eight superspecialty hospitals under the trust they were registered in.

However, the Medical Education Department in Karnataka has introduced common-by-laws for all the autonomous institutes and these colleges have been invited to sign a memorandum of association (MoA) specifying their common objectives, cadre and recruitment (C&R) rules and other by-laws.

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As per the latest media report by the Times of India, already, the MoU has been signed by six institutes including Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, Vijayanagar Institute of Medical Sciences, Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences, Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health, Karwar Institute of Medical Sciences and Gulbarga Institute of Medical Sciences.

The new common by-laws dicate that the tenure of a director and a principal is restricted to four years or retirement, whichever is earlier. It also specifies that they will not be eligible for holding the post for a second term.

Apart from this, under the new rules, a rotating tenure has been introduced for the heads of the departments. According to the previous rules, the HoDs used to continue in their posts until superannuation. 

However, the new rules specify that in case there is more than one professor, the HoD shall be rotated among them and each of the professors will serve for three years in the order of seniority.

Commenting on the matter, an official added, "Rotation allows exposure to different leadership styles, promoting adaptability and a broader skill set among department heads. New heads may bring innovative ideas and fresh perspectives, fostering a dynamic environment for academic and research initiatives. It will also provide continuous professional development opportunities for faculty members, enhancing their leadership and managerial skills."

Besides, now all the colleges will have a governing council comprising the medical education minister, principal secretaries to the govt for medical education, finance and social welfare departments, vice-chancellor of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Director of Medical Education, Deputy Commissioner of the districts for institutes located outside Bengaluru Urban.

The Council will also have an eminent person in the field of allopathic medicine nominated by the government and two eminent social workers/philanthropists/NGO representatives nominated by the government. Among these two nominated persons there will be at least one woman. Further, the rules state that the tenure will be three years for the nominated members.

Speaking about the common by-laws, the Minister of Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil told TOI, "Earlier we had a separate set of by-laws for each institution which brought in a lot of disparity. Now, we have a level playing ground. It will help us make common decisions. Some changes have also been made. Rotation of HoDs is brought in. A provision has been made for the recruitment of assistant professors through an exam. It will bring in more transparency."

"The main idea is that there should be a uniform rule to all medical colleges under the DME. There were controversies in the appointments of directors and how they function. A common set of C&R rules will avoid such issues," added the Director of Medical Education Sujatha Rathod.

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