Telangana doctors serving in government hospitals have asked the state to revise postgraduate medical admission rules that they say exclude in-service candidates who completed their MBBS degrees outside the state. The request was submitted to Health Minister Damodara Rajanarasimha by the Telangana Gazetted Officers Association’s Doctors Forum and the Telangana Medical and Public Health Doctors’ Association.
A delegation representing the two associations met the minister and presented the difficulties faced by doctors who have studied outside Telangana but have subsequently worked in the state’s public health system. The associations sought eligibility for postgraduate medical seats to be considered on the basis of service in Telangana’s government hospitals, rather than being determined primarily by local status and the location where an applicant completed their MBBS.
Under the existing admission norms, eligibility for postgraduate seats, including seats earmarked for in-service candidates, is generally linked to local status and place of study, according to the associations. They said this has left some doctors who have spent years working in Telangana’s district hospitals, community health centres and primary health centres unable to compete for the seats.
The issue affects doctors recruited into the state’s public health system from different educational backgrounds. Many of them completed their undergraduate medical education in other states before taking up government service in Telangana. The associations argued that continued service in the state should be recognised when applications for postgraduate medical education are assessed.
The doctors’ groups said the current arrangement could discourage experienced government doctors from pursuing higher qualifications. They also linked the admission rules to the availability of specialists in government hospitals, particularly in rural and underserved areas. Doctors who obtain postgraduate qualifications can serve in specialised roles, but the associations said existing eligibility restrictions make it harder for some serving physicians to upgrade their training through the in-service channel.
The request therefore connects an admissions policy with the staffing capacity of Telangana’s public healthcare network. District hospitals, community health centres and primary health centres depend on doctors who are willing to work outside major urban centres, and the associations said policy recognition of that service was necessary when postgraduate opportunities were allocated.
“We want a policy change that would recognise the service rendered by such doctors in Telangana while considering PG admissions,” said Dr Kathi Janardhan, president of the TGO Association’s Doctors Forum and TMPHDA. He said the minister responded positively to the request.
No formal decision has been announced so far. The next step would be a government consideration of the associations’ representation and any subsequent change to the eligibility rules governing postgraduate medical admissions for in-service doctors.
