Medicos on Duty, But No Pay: PMO directs Health Ministry to address non-payment of stipend
Stipend for MBBS Interns and Resident Doctors
New Delhi: In the latest development regarding the issue of non-payment of stipend to resident doctors and MBBS interns, the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has asked the Department of Health and Family Welfare to address the matter and take appropriate action.
A recent Right to Information (RTI) application filed by Dr KV Babu, a health activist based in Kerala, revealed that the PMO received Dr. Babu's letter on March 21 and forwarded the same "for action as appropriate" through the Public Grievances Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS) to the Department of Health and Family Welfare, TNIE has reported.
"Redressal of grievance is under the purview of appropriate authority dealing with subject-specific. Therefore, the information sought relates to the authority concerned to which the complaint was forwarded," PMO's RTI reply dated April 24, 2025, stated.
The PMO's directive comes after an RTI application was filed by Dr. Babu, who has been pursuing the matter concerning the stipend of medical students for the past two years.
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that the file notings of the National Medical Commission (NMC), obtained through a Right to Information (RTI) application, revealed that altogether 33 Government and 27 private medical colleges were not paying any stipends to their MBBS interns, postgraduate resident doctors, and senior doctors.
NMC revealed this data after the doctor sought copies of the legal opinion availed by NMC regarding action against medical colleges based on the show cause notice dated 28.11.2024 issued to 198 medical colleges. He had also sought the file noting along with the copies of affidavits filed in the Supreme Court this year.
Last year in November, NMC had slapped show-cause notices on 198 medical institutes for not complying with the Commission's directives to uphold the details of the stipend paid to the interns and resident doctors. Releasing a list of these medical colleges on 28.11.2024, NMC specified that the failure of those colleges to submit the information regarding stipends was "considered seriously". NMC asked the medical colleges to furnish the data after the Supreme Court took cognisance of the issue of non payment of stipend to medical colleges.
However, the file noting dated 11.07.2024 revealed that only 290 government and 265 private medical colleges, including Deemed to be Universities, furnished their data for 2023-2024 till 11.07.2024. The remaining 198 colleges (115 government and 83 private colleges), including Deemed to be Universities out of a total of 753 colleges, did not furnish their data.
Even though the note hinted at the possibility of action being taken against defaulting medical colleges, and the NMC had mentioned issuing show-cause notices to colleges, no action was taken.
When Dr. Babu filed another RTI seeking the details of action taken by the Boards/NMC against medical colleges for non-compliance under Maintenance of Standards of Medical Education Regulations, 2023, along with the details of action taken for irregularities in the payment of stipends to interns/PGs during this period, NMC clarified that the States/UTs had the responsibility to take action, not NMC.
Back on January 29, the doctor had also written to the Union Health Minister J P Nadda urging him to intervene under Section 45 of the NMC Act, which empowers the Central Government to issue policy directions to the Commission and Autonomous Boards.
Since NMC did not take any action against the defaulting colleges and the Health Ministry failed to ensure that the Council followed the rules, he then wrote to the PMO on March 16 and raised the issue. When he did not receive any response, he filed an RTI on march 23 seeking to know the status of his letter to the PMO.
Commenting on this, he told The New Indian Express, "Here is a peculiar situation, and hence, I have made the request to the PMO. The State Medical Councils have no jurisdiction on this issue, and the NMC has failed to take action, while the Health Ministry has been evasive, though payment of stipend to MBBS interns and PG doctors is mandatory. Non-payment of stipend is punishable, as per the NMC regulations."
"I do believe intervention by the PMO will end the injustice to interns and PG doctors who are not being paid any stipend or even nominal stipends by many medical college managements across the nation," he added.
Also Read: 60 Medical Colleges Not Paying Stipend to Medicos- NMC response to RTI
