Guwahati, July 21: A call-up from the country’s top-bracket medical institutions for pursuing super-speciality courses can save post-graduate doctors in Assam from doing rural stints or pay penalty of Rs 10 lakh in lieu of it.

The Assam government has recently introduced a bond for PG doctors making it mandatory for them to serve at public hospitals and in rural areas for 10 years. In case of non-adherence, doctors will have to pay a compensation of Rs 10 lakh to the government.

The bond has also stipulated that the government will not issue permanent certificates of PG degrees to the erring doctors. The government will also file bakijai cases (cases for recovering bond amounts) in the court against doctors who do not pay the amount.

A health department official told The Telegraph that health and family welfare minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has conceded to the demand of the PG doctors that those who get the chance to pursue super-speciality degree courses should be exempted from the bond.

The decision in this regard was taken in view of acute shortage of super-specialist doctors in the state.

Doctors can pursue super-speciality degree courses after completing postgraduate degree courses to obtain the skill and knowledge to offer critical care treatment to their patients.

The official said the Gauhati Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) and other medical colleges in the state have not been able to perform critical surgeries like coronary artery bypass graft and renal transplant independently because of non-availability of super- specialists. The GMCH has been performing such surgeries with the help of doctors from hospitals outside the state.

Sources said lack of adequate number of super-specialists is one of the important reasons for many leading hospitals in the country for not setting up their units in the state.

“The government has, however, made it clear that exemption would be given only to those doctors who are selected for super-speciality courses in reputed institutions like the All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi. Doctors, after completing their super-speciality courses, will have to serve the government hospitals in the state for a certain period,” the official said.

On the other hand, the government has agreed in principle to concede to the PG doctors’ demand that 10 years is too long and it should be reduced to five years. The health minister said reduction from 10 to 5 years would be done in a phased manner but the government has rejected the demand of giving concession on the penalty of Rs 10 lakh.