Health Bulletin 17/February/2026 - Video
Overview
Here are the top health stories for the day:
Gynaecologists Body Urges NMC to Reconsider NEET PG 2025 Cutoff Reduction
The Federation of Obstetric and Gynaecological Societies of India (FOGSI), representing clinicians and academicians committed to ensuring high standards in medical education and patient care, said it is seriously concerned about the repeated reduction in the NEET-PG qualifying percentile. It also called for the rationalisation of postgraduate medical fees to protect merit and ensure patient safety.
For more details, check out the full story on the link below:
Gynaecologists body urges NMC to review NEET PG 2025 cutoff reduction
NMC Reviews Appeals Against State Medical Council Decisions
Following an RTI response from the National Medical Commission (NMC), which revealed that it had rejected 256 appeals filed by non-RMPs but heard 185 appeals by doctors against decisions of State Medical Councils since 2020, the apex regulatory body has now taken the matter under consideration.
The development comes after the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, through its Medical Education (Policy) Division, wrote to the NMC on January 20, 2026, asking it to examine the issue raised by Kerala-based RTI activist Dr KV Babu and take action in accordance with the law. The Ministry also asked the Commission to apprise it of the outcome.
For more details, check out the full story on the link below:
NMC takes up issue of appeals against state medical council decisions
Rising Psychoactive Substance Use Among Indian School Students, Nationwide Survey Finds
A recent nationwide study published in The National Medical Journal of India reveals that a significant portion (10.3% in the past year) of school-going adolescents in India engage in psychoactive substance use, primarily for occasional purposes. The findings highlight a growing need for early intervention and school-based prevention programs.
Adolescence is characterized by rapid physical, cognitive, and social transformations with increased risky behaviors, yet recent data on substance use among school students in the Indian context remains scarce. Household surveys often suffer from under-reporting due to a lack of privacy, necessitating school-based assessments to capture more accurate prevalence rates. Led by Dr. Anju Dhawan from the National Drug Dependence Treatment Centre at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, the study aimed to evaluate the extent, patterns, and associated risk factors of substance use among students across diverse urban and rural settings.
For more details, check out the full story on the link below:
Nationwide Survey Highlights Prevalence of Psychoactive Substance Use Among Indian School Students
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