465 non-service appointments to be declared 'illegal' - demand doctors

Madurai: A group of postgraduate doctors and assistant surgeons have filed a bunch of petitions before the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court against the selection of 465 non-service candidates as assistant surgeons (speciality) in the state.The petitions were filed after the November end protests met a futile end

The petitions have been filed by a group of seven assistant surgeons from all over, and 74 postgraduate final year medical students from various districts. They all have in their petitions claimed that no rules of reservation, eligible norms prescribed in the minimum qualifications for teachers in the Medical Institutions Regulations, 1998 and guidelines issued by the state's health and family welfare were followed in the selection.

The petitioners have alleged that the authorities have filled up posts without following norms, all in the name of the dengue epidemic.They have demanded that the court refrains those selected pending case disposal and also declare their selection ‘illegal and unconstitutional.

The petitioners have also pleaded for the government to be directed to conduct transfer counselling, pointing at 744 vacancies that have been lying vacant for posts of assistant surgeons (speciality) and demanded fresh recruitment to these post.

They revealed that the post of the assistant surgeon (speciality) existed in the government medical college hospitals and government hospitals in taluk and district headquarters. To fill these posts, they felt called for the authorities conducting transfer counselling first and then filling the remaining vacancies through postgraduate students; who are in service based on the CML (civil medical list) seniority.

The petitioners also demanded that besides, vacancies arising out of retirement, promotion, newly-created posts, death, and administrative transfer should be notified and displayed on the official website reports TOI.

However, the Director, Medical Education (DME) and Medical Services without notification releases on the official website went ahead and issued a circular on November 15, 2017 inviting applications from medical officers in Directorate of Medical Education and other Directorates for the posts of junior resident/ tutors/ senior resident/ assistant professor in certain specialties in institutions that are under the control of the DME.