Rural clause

Guwahati, Jan. 20: Medical students from outside Assam who have completed their MBBS from the state’s institutions will have to serve in villages for a year to make themselves eligible to take entrance tests to post-graduate courses.

Dispur has made it mandatory for medical students from outside Assam to render one year of rural service before taking the entrance test for post-graduate courses.

Till now, medical students outside Assam — for whom 15 per cent seats are reserved in MBBS courses in the state medical colleges — appeared in the post-graduate entrance test to the state’s medical colleges without serving in rural areas on the ground that they took admission in MBBS classes on the all-India quota.

In 2009, the state government made the rural posting mandatory for MBBS graduates from Assam.

Ever since, 85 per cent of MBBS graduates from Assam are sent for one-year rural posting before they sat for the post-graduation test.

Medical graduates from outside argue that since they do not belong to Assam, it is not necessary for them to serve in villages in the state to take the entrance test.

Debojit Hazarika, the director of medical education, told The Telegraph that the state government recently came out with a notification making it mandatory for all students who aspire to take admission in post-graduate courses from the Assam quota to first serve in rural areas.

In the post-graduate medical courses in the state, 50 per cent seats are reserved for the Assam quota and the rest is reserved for all-India candidates.

The one-year rural service is not mandatory for medical graduates who sit for the post-graduate entrance test from the all-India quota.

Hazarika said if medical graduates from outside the state who took admission in MBBS in Assam’s medical colleges under the all-India quota do not want to serve in villages, they would have to appear for the post-graduate entrance tests on the all-India quota.

“Since the notification was issued only recently, the directorate of medical education decided to implement the same from 2013 to avoid any confusion among students,” he said.

Dispur’s decision has brought cheer to young doctors.

The Junior Doctors’ Association of Gauhati Medical College and Hospital has termed the decision as justice delayed but not denied.

The association’s president, Kumar Partha Pratim, said discrimination in eligibility for the post-graduate entrance test has finally been razed and everybody would get equal opportunities.

“The new law clearly reflects that the state government really cares for the medical students from Assam. The association is thankful to health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma for his pro-active role on the issue,” Pratim said.