Medical Council Of India declines KGMU's request for more PG seats

Lucknow: The King George's Medical University's plan to expand its post graduate wing, has suffered a setback with the Medical Council of India(MCI), striking down 10 of the 12 proposals received for approval. The proposals have been disapproved due to discrepancies pointed out, earlier, not being done away with, in a satisfactory manner.

Two of the three proposals for expansion of postgraduate medical courses at Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS), under KGMU have been stalled by the MCI, as well.

In September 2016, the apex education regulator had submitted the assessor's report declining approval to 16 proposals, of the 19 that it had received from KGMU. The KGMU, in turn submitted its compliance in December 2016, after which the council followed with a 'Compliance Verification Assessment Report' in January 2017.

Most KGMU discrepancies pointed by the Council were related to norm compliance. The Council is now positioned to submit its final report with recommendations to the Central Government.

Cross-transfer of faculty between departments, low bed occupancy on assessment day,flouting of MCI guidelines in relation to promotions, and inadequate staff and equipment, were some of the shortcomings pointed at, by the Medical Council.

The MCI also had issues related to both radiotherapy, & traumatology and surgery department. The radio therapy department it said, had decreasing brachytherapy (advanced cancer treatment) cases; the number having lessened from 783 cases to 356 cases, in the last three years. The traumatology and surgery department compliance it said had been received well beyond the last date.

KGMUs request for approval for an increase in the number of seats in MD Radiotherapy, MD Community Medicine, MD Pathology, MS Ophthalmology, MD Microbiology, MD General medicine, MD Anesthesia, MS ENT, MD Respiratory medicine, MD Pharmacology, MD Radio diagnosis met with only two consents from the Council. These are: MD Community Medicine and MD Pharmacology. The university's request for beginning of an MS Traumatology & Surgery PG unit was also declined, reports TOI.

RMLIMS, which asked for permission to start MD Emergency Medicine and MD Nuclear Medicine also faced an MCI disapproval. However, its request for an increase in MD Anesthesia seats, was approved by the regulator.

Reacting to the setback, Prof Ravi Kant, Vice Chancellor (VC), KGMU, said, "This is routine MCI procedure where sometimes its takes years to get approval but we will assess what they want and comply with it. At the end of the day, even the MCI wants increase in teaching capacity. We have resent a proposal for increase of almost 300 seats in 30 departments."

The MCI has however given a 12 seat increase approval to KGMU for its MD Pharmacology course and also a nod for three more seats, in its MD Community Medicine course.

Two seats have also been approved in RMLIMS's MD Anaesthesia course, which falls under the KGMU.