Medical council moves SC
The GCRG college took the revised order to the directorate general medical education (DGME), Uttar Pradesh, which in turn called MCI officials to verify the sanctity of the order.
After MCI got a certified copy of the order, it approached SC for an urgent hearing.
“The SC got very angry and passed a direction to test the propriety of the HC’S order,” said Vikas Singh, a senior counsel who pleaded for MCI in SC.
Former attorney general Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared for the college, admitted the judge committed a “minor impropriety” by correcting the order without hearing both sides. He, however, defended the high court.
“The Supreme Court had asked the HC not to pass any interim order and the HC passed the final order. So I don’t think the HC did any wrong,” Rohatgi added.
The GCRG Institute was among 32 new colleges that failed inspections in 2016 by the MCI.
All 32 colleges approached the Sc-appointed Lodha Committee which allowed them to admit the first batch on the condition that if they failed a subsequent MCI inspection, they would be barred from admitting new batch for the two next academic sessions and would lose their ₹2 crore security deposits.
Barring two, all other colleges including GCRG failed the MCI inspection.
The Lodha Committee reheard the matter and recommended to the Union health ministry to allow 23 colleges out of 30 to admit students. GCRG was one of them.
The ministry turned down the Lodha Committee’s recommendation on May 31.
The colleges again approached the Supreme Court which sent the matter back to the ministry directing it to reconsider and pass a reasoned order of disapproval in case of each college.
Unable to get a favourable order from the ministry, GCRG once again challenged the ministry’s order in the SC.
During the hearing, the college withdrew the matter with SC’S permission to approach the Allahabad high court.
The SC, however, categorically said the HC would not pass any order which would allow the college to admit fresh student for 2017-18.
One of the most preferred career choices in India, the standard of medical education has deteriorated over the years, according to a parliamentary panel report last year. It said medical graduates lack competence in performing basic healthcare tasks like normal deliveries.
A section of private colleges allegedly hire doctors on rent to pose as full-time faculty members and fill beds with healthy people to pass government inspections. There are 460 medical colleges in the country, 202 of them government-run.
Alleged corrupt practices by private medical colleges came under the spotlight after the CBI arrested a retired Odisha high court judge and five others in a separate case in which a medical college tried to influence judicial process to gain permission for MBBS admissions for 2017-18.
Hours after Friday’s stampede, railway officials sought bids for a new pedestrian bridge at the Elphinstone station, according to news agency PTI.
“This accident will hopefully be a wake-up call for the minister and his officials. Instead of fancy bullet trains, they should first ensure railway commuters don’t die horrible deaths like this because of their negligence,” said Leena Shirodkar, a Parel resident who commutes to Andheri every day for work.
Railway minister Piyush Goyal, who recently took charge, was coincidentally on his way to Mumbai when the stampede took place to take a local train to understand the problems that the city’s 75 lakh train commuters face. He ordered a high-level probe and visited the KEM hospital, where the injured were taken. He also announced that the Elphinstone Road FOB will be expanded immediately.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced ~5 lakh compensation for families of the deceased, and said all medical expenses of the injured will be borne by the Maharashtra government. The CM also promised that the state and the railway ministry will conduct an inquiry into the incident and take strict action.
President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled the deaths.
BJP’S ally Shiv Sena lashed out, calling the stampede “a public massacre of the people by the government.” Leaders of opposition Congress too criticised the government, calling the tragedy a “man-made disaster”.