5 of 33 NMC posts vacant: Health Minister tells Parliament

New Delhi: Among the thirty-three posts at the National Medical Commission (NMC), five posts are lying vacant, the Union Minister of State for Health, Smt. Anupriya Patel informed the Lok Sabha.

In response to the queries raised in this regard by Lok Sabha members, Com. Sevaraj V. and Shri Subbarayan K., Minister Patel further informed that in July this year, nineteen part-time members of the Commission were selected by conducting a draw of lots as per the regulations under the NMC Act, 2019.

She said, "Thirty-three (33) member posts of National Medical Commission (NMC) are notified under NMC Act, 2019. Details of twenty-eight (28) members in position and five (5) vacant posts are at Annexure. Further, nineteen (19) Part-Time Members in NMC have been selected by conducting a draw of lots on 15/07/2025 as prescribed in the Regulations framed under NMC Act, 2019."

"To fill up the vacant posts, advertisements have been published in English and Hindi national daily newspapers on 31/08/2024 and 11/10/2024 inviting applications from the eligible professionals," the Minister further added.

The queries included whether the majority of the member posts at the National Medical Commission remained vacant for a considerable period of time, the total number of members of the Commission and the total vacant posts of Members at present, along with the data since when the seats became vacant. Further, the Ministry was also questioned about the reasons for not filling up the vacancies and the measures being taken to fill up the vacant posts.

As per the NMC Act, the Commission has 33 members, including a Chairperson, 10 ex-officio members (including Presidents of four autonomous boards, DGHS, DG ICMR, AIIMS Director), and 22 part-time members.

According to the details provided by the Ministry, Dr. Abhijat Sheth is the current chairperson of NMC, Dr. Vijay Oza is the President of PGMEB, and Dr. M K Ramesh is the President of Medical Assessment and Rating Board. The posts of Presidents of NMC Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB), and Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) are vacant.

Apart from them, NMC has six Ex-Officio members, including Dr. Sunita Sharma (DG, DGHS), Dr. Rajiv Bahl (DG, ICMR), Ms. Vinod Kotwal, Dr. Vivek Lal, Dr. M Srinivas, and Dr. C.S. Pramesh.

Further, the list of nominated part-time members of NMC includes Dr. Nirja Arun Gupta, Dr. M K Aseri, Dr. Surender Kashyap, Dr. Mukesh Tripathi, Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pulala, Dr. Dibakar Chandra Deka, Prof. P.S. Shukla, Prof. (Dr.) Dinesh Kumar Singh, Dr. Suman, Dr. Ashok Khandelwal, Dr. Sudipta Kumar Roy, Dr. Sharanabasappa S. Karbhari, Dr. George Thira, Dr. Mahesh Kumar Sinha, Dr. Kanak Choudhury, Dr. Sandeep Dogra, Dr. Sandeep Dogra, Dr. Anup Kumar Barman, Dr. Simpson Sareo, and Dr. Manoj Kumar Verma.

The details revealed that 3 posts of part-time members at NMC are lying vacant. While 2 of these 3 posts have been vacant since September 2024, 1 post has been vacant since September 2020.

Composition of National Medical Commission Members

Medical Dialogues had reported that in the beginning of this year, MoS Health Smt. Patel had informed the Rajya Sabha that altogether 19 posts were lying vacant in four autonomous boards of the National Medical Commission (NMC). These vacant posts included the posts of Presidents of the Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB), Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB), and the Ethics and Medical Registration Board (EMRB).

Besides, the posts of two whole-time and two part-time members each of the NMC UG and PG Board, Medical Assessment and Rating Board and NMC Ethics Board were also lying vacant.

Last year, the Union Health Ministry had invited applications to fill up vacant posts in the four Autonomous Boards of NMC. Applications were invited for the posts of President, Secretary, and members of the Commission, along with the key positions in the four boards under the NMC.

Also Read: What has been done to fill 19 vacant NMC posts? Health Ministry Faces Tough Questions in Parliament