Ranchi: The cabinet on Wednesday resolved to double the penalty for students of undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses who quit studies midway and mandated those who acquire MBBS, MD and MS degrees from Jharkhand to work in the state for at least three years.

Together, these two initiatives will reduce the drought of doctors in Jharkhand, the government hopes.

So far, doctors getting their degrees from Jharkhand had to work here for one year only, before leaving for arguably greener pastures.

Now, to ensure that young doctors work here for at least three years, the medical college concerned will keep all their original degree certificates, returnable only when the individual concerned quits the job after the stipulated tenure.

So far, the penalty, payable to the state government for those quitting MBBS midway was Rs 10 lakh and MD and MS courses Rs 15 lakh. Now, some who leaves MBBS (undergraduate course) will have to pay Rs 20 lakh and someone who quits his/her MD or MS (postgraduate courses) Rs 30 lakh.

Health minister Ramchandra Chandravanshi said the logic behind these two new resolutions was sound.

Reasoning out the steep penalty hike, he said, "It has often been seen that a sizeable number of medical students secure admissions in medical colleges outside the state after a few months. Precious seats allotted to them stay vacant throughout the tenure of the courses. The new rule is likely to reduce this (attrition)."

Other decisions

• Amendments in Jharkhand Industrial and Capital Investment Policy to woo investors by way of granting them more incentives, especially in the case of start-ups and local entrepreneurs/ produce

• Financial assistance for supply of supplementary diet (seasonal fruits, eggs) to children aged between three and six years at anganwadis raised from Rs 4.50 to Rs 6 per head, per day

• The draft of an MoU with Central Council for Research in Yoga and Naturopathy approved to run the Yoga Centre in Ranchi, whose building is ready for use for three years

• The services of Chas circle officer (Bokaro district) Nirmal Kumar Toppo (now suspended) terminated for his alleged acts of omission and commission during the transfer of 103 acres of government land

• Ernst & Young to prepare Jharkhand's memorandum to the Fifteenth Finance Commission. For this, the company will be paid Rs 57 lakh. The memo will list the state's share in central taxes and central grants that are due to it

• The services of teachers and employees working at various project girls school across the state, from before February 4, 1989, to be regularised from January 1, 1989 or their real date of appointment, whichever is later

• Service regulations (rules for appointments, promotions, transfers, suspensions and dismissals) for revenue service and clerical ranks approved

• The administrative expenses of land acquisition works for national highway projects to be fixed at 2.5 per cent of the total compensation amounts. This would put a cap on the administrative cost

• Eight-and-a-half acres would be leased out to Rungta Mines (iron ore) for 30 years in Rajnagar revenue circle of Seraikela-Kharsawan for payment of around Rs 1.31 crore.