Medical services paralysed as doctors go on strike

Mangalore, June 25: With doctors in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Uttara Kannada joining the daylong nationwide strike called by the Indian Medical Association, medical services across the coastal Karnataka were remained paralysed on Monday.

The strike was called in protest against the proposed National Commission for Human Resources in Health (NCHRH) Bill, 2011.

Most of the private hospitals, clinics, nursing homes and diagnostic centres remained closed since morning, except for the emergency services.

Doctors of all the regional government and private medical college hospitals have supported the IMA's strike call.

As part of the strike, dozens of members of the Mangalore branch of IMA staged a symbolic agitation in front of IMA House in City at 9:45 am.

Dr K Jayaprakash Shetty, president, IMA, Mangalore speaking on the occasion said that said that all the doctors in the country were against the introduction of NCHRH Bill, as it would create an organisation that supersedes the now-defunct Medical Council of India and all other paramedical councils.

“Today all government doctors have boycotted their work, while doctors who are running their private clinics also joined the agitation just to say no to the Bill”, he said, adding that all the doctors have expressed their disapproval for the dissolution of MCI.

“With the new scheme, we will have to go to Delhi to get permissions to practice. It will allow anyone to practice anywhere, leading to chaos,” he said.

Dr K Mohandas Bhandary, Co-Chairman, IMA Standing Committee, said that if the government really wants quality service, it should grant autonomous power to MIC.

Dr Annayya Kulal, Dr Siddarth M Shetty, Dr Satheesh K Bhandary were among the protesters. The protesters later submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner.

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Karnataka to scrap separate entrance exams for private universities from 2025

News Network

September 20,2024

Starting in the 2025-26 academic year, private universities in Karnataka offering professional courses will no longer conduct separate entrance exams. This decision follows a directive from the state’s Higher Education Department, prompting private universities to form an association and agree to this significant change.

In a recent meeting with Higher Education Minister Dr. M. C. Sudhakar, representatives from 17 private universities confirmed their decision to discontinue individual entrance tests. Of the 27 private universities in the state, 17 offer professional courses, and they have collectively agreed to accept scores from existing national or state-level entrance exams.

“Some universities will consider JEE scores, others will rely on KCET, and a few are inclined towards COMEDK,” Dr. Sudhakar stated, leaving the choice of examination to the universities themselves. However, the department has also suggested that the universities consider a unified entrance test for admissions.

Looking ahead, Dr. Sudhakar hinted that the government may introduce a common entrance test for general degree courses at private universities as well. "As government colleges and universities currently don’t require entrance exams for general degree courses, we haven’t made any decisions on this yet," he explained.

The meeting also addressed concerns over the high fees charged by private universities. To regulate this, the universities were instructed to establish fee fixation committees, headed by retired judges, as required by law. These committees will be responsible for determining tuition fees. Additionally, the government will continue to regulate fees for 40% of seats in professional courses that are filled through KCET.

In an effort to bring greater uniformity among private institutions, the government is considering enacting a common law for all private universities, which would replace the individual acts currently governing each university. This would place all private universities under a single regulatory framework.

This move is expected to streamline the admissions process and create a more standardized system for both professional and general degree programs across Karnataka's private universities.

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