Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday asked the Medical Council of India to adopt a liberal attitude in granting permission for opening medical colleges in the State.
Expressing concern at the existence of just one medical college for a population of over one crore in the State when one medical college existed for a population of just 13 lakh in Karnataka, Kumar asked the MCI to be lenient while taking a decision regarding the opening of new medical colleges.
Inaugurating the annual national conference of the Indian Medical Association christened IMACON 2006, Mr. Kumar said the MCI should not issue the threat of derecognising the existing medical colleges in Bihar.
"Give us some time... the situation is fast improving and medical colleges of Bihar will soon meet the standards of MCI," he said.
Claiming that the situation on the medical front has improved since his government came to power, Mr. Kumar said that while only 39 patients visited primary health centres in January, the visit of patients to the PHC touched 3,000 in October.
"The record visit of patients to PHCs means that doctors are available at their places of posting and patients are getting medicines at government hospitals," he said.
Mr. Kumar expressed happiness over the election of Dr Ajay Kumar, a knowm urologist from bihar, as the national president of the IMA.
Addressing the conference, Dr Ajay Kumar also expressed his concern over mushrooming of medical colleges and unequal distribution and said that the Centre should look into the matter of inequality in distribution of medical colleges.
"The State Governments should not be short-sighted in issuing the essentiality certificate for a new medical college," Mr. Kumar said adding the Mudaliar committee had recommended one medical college for a population of five million. Dr. Kumar also wanted to know from the Chief Minister as to why the fifth Pay Commission for doctors have not been implemented when in some States the sixth Pay Commission has already submitted its report. — PTI
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