Appointment of MBBS as Teaching Faculty: PG graduates to approach CAT

Thiruvananthapuram: Medical Post Graduate students who have come up against a wall in terms of employment at the entry level in government medical colleges with the authorities insisting on taking MBBS graduates for posts have decided to take matters up with the Central Administrative Tribunal. The tribunal is meant to take matters up with Director, Medical Education (DME), the initiators of this change.

Vacant Lecturer posts in various departments call for MBBS as the basic qualification for eligibility declares a PSC notification. This eligibility status has been declared despite there being 20 PG graduates in the PSC list for the 23 vacancies in the forensic department. Paediatric Surgery carries 7 vacancies of which a mere 2 have been brought to the notice of the PSC, which has 7 MCh qualifiers in paediatric surgery.

A similar situation exists in other departments with 42 physiology vacancies, 46 biochemistry and 6 in the category of General Surgery. Despite the availability of postgraduates for all these seats, the PSC is all set to conduct a written examination of MBBS qualifiers for the post of lecturers in November.

"Notifications to many posts have been issued after a long gap. The last notification for several posts was issued in 2011. It has to be remembered that hundreds of medical postgraduates are waiting for a chance to get into the job all these years. At this time, the DME has come out with this strange decision," Dr P Jathin, State President, Kerala Medical Post Graduate Association (KMPGA) told TOI.

"It has become certain that the PGs are not going to get the jobs now since they have to compete with the MBBS graduates in the written tests conducted by the PSC. This is happening when the Medical Council of India (MCI) has made assistant professor as the entry cadre for medical colleges. But as per the new decision, the entry cadre has become lecturer post which has no recognition of the MCI. Hence the PGs have approached CAT since they are losing their chance," said Dr Jathin.

However, the PSC puts the decision change onus on the DME. "The DME has given a statement that since they are unable to find qualified people for the posts, MBBS graduates should be called for the posts," a PSC official told TOI.