MCI Biometric Systems operational from Aug to combat faculty fudging

New Delhi: The Medical Council of India(MCI), has decided to install biometric attendance machines in all medical colleges on its list to combat the menace of rampant fudging of faculty records. The biometric attendance is supposed to be linked to Aadhaar cards. The installation of the machines will be over by mid August in all government and private colleges.

234 colleges of the total of 500 medical colleges have already got the biometric attendance machines in place while the others are in the process of getting installed, confirmed, Dr Ajay Kumar, Incharge,Digital Mission Mode Project (DMMP). According to him some states did create problems in their installation, however, their goal has finally been met with.

Talking to TOI Director, Medical Education (DME) in UP, Dr KK Gupta revealed that 35 institutes including three institutes,12 state medical colleges, and 20 private medical colleges will in all probability start using these thumb machines from August.

The Medical Council of India will be able to monitor faculty and resident doctors' attendance after the digital mission mode project gets underway.

"The malpractice of fudging faculty records to get approvals from MCI would end when the Aadhaar card details of faculty members are linked to biometric attendance devices," the DME Director added.

Dr Renu Agarwal, Associate Professor in SN Medical College, Agra revealed that MCI teams are linking Aadhaar of around 570 doctors. This would lead to the data being online soon. According to her the new system also envisages"one country one registration" under which doctors will be issued Electronic Radio Frequency Identification enabled identity card to help monitor attendance, salary and work status of faculty."

She said, the Council through this card would be able to locate the doctor during his or her duty hours, so that no one skips their lectures or leaves the institute after marking attendance.

MCI inspections often witness fudging of faculty records, in order to get MCI approval for running colleges, a senior doctor told TOI.

MCI inspections often witness fudging of faculty records, in order to get Council approval for running colleges, a senior doctor told TOI. The MCI had asked the faculty members of all colleges, both government and private to submit their aadhaar card details for link up with the biometric attendance system.

Conceptualized in 2009, the biometric attendance system passed through a lot of red tape, before getting released, recently.