Guwahati, March 10: The Assam government today tabled a bill in the Assembly to make the status of rural health practitioners equivalent to that of BSc (community health) graduates in order to enable them to serve as paramedical personnel.

The fate of rural health practitioners was uncertain after Gauhati High Court de-recognised their diploma in October 2014.

Health and family welfare minister Nazrul Islam introduced the bill, titled The Assam Community Health Professionals' (Registration and Competency) Bill, 2015, in the Assembly today.

The bill seeks to give the same status to the students who have completed the diploma in medicine and rural healthcare (DMRHC) course in the Medical Institute in Jorhat with that of BSc (community health) course.

The Assam government constituted the Assam Rural Health Regulatory Authority (ARHRA) and introduced the three-year diploma in medicine and rural healthcare (DMRHC) in 2005 under the provision of the Assam Rural Health Regulatory Authority Act, 2004, for creation of a set of health professionals to improve services in rural areas.

The students, after completing the three-year diploma course, had to undergo six months' internship and then they were registered as rural health practitioners (RHP) under ARHRA.

But the Assam branch of the Indian Medical Association filed a writ petition in Gauhati High Court challenging the ARHRA Act, 2004 and the high court struck down the act on October 30, 2014, describing the act as unconstitutional.

In view of the high court order, the future of the rural health practitioners who are working under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) or National Health Mission (NHM) and of those who were pursuing the course till 2014 became uncertain.