‘Not even minimum transparency’: Doctor pushing NMC to make medical college reports public

NEW DELHI: On March 28, the Central Information Commission (CIC) advised the National Medical Commission to upload infrastructure and related assessment reports of medical colleges on the official NMC website, nmc.org.in. This was after a year-long effort by doctor and activist Dr Mohamed Khader Meeran to obtain these reports from the NMC.

The erstwhile Medical Commission of India (MCI) used to upload inspection reports on its website but the NMC doesn’t. In consequence, there’s little information in the public domain on the many new medical colleges or even the established ones.

On March 9, 2022, Dr Meeran had filed a Right To Information (RTI) application. When that didn’t get a satisfactory response, he appealed to the CIC. Dr Meeran, also the author of Patients' Rights in India, spoke to Careers360 about the functioning of NMC, transparency and why having medical college inspection reports in the public domain is important for prospective MBBS students.

Q. What do assessment reports of medical colleges contain?

A. The inspectors or assessors of the National Medical Commission physically go to the college campus. To prepare the report, they check whether the medical college has sufficient number of beds, faculty, nurses and infrastructure of hostels, library, lecture halls, playground and hospital. So, the report has all the relevant information crucial for [prospective] MBBS students to decide their admission in a particular college.

The assessors write down their observations on replies submitted by college authorities.

After preparing the report, the assessors send one copy to the NMC and one to the college. Based on the observations and recommendations, the commission decides whether or not to sanction the running of a medical college and grant permission for admissions for the academic year in which assessment is conducted.

Q. How are these reports beneficial for students ?

A. Apart from medical education regulator officials, the dean and other officials of the particular medical college also sign the report. Hence it is legally valid and reliable as it is endorsed by both medical education regulator and college authorities.

Through medical college assessment reports, aspiring medical students can verify the claims made by the medical colleges regarding their infrastructure and faculty. They can check whether a particular college is fulfilling the prescribed medical education norms or not. There should be some reliable source of information through which the students can know whether the college is meeting the NMC mandated minimum required infrastructure and faculty and make admission decisions.

Q. How often are medical colleges inspected?

A. According to the norms, each medical college has to be inspected physically every academic year. Based on the observations in the report, the medical commission gives permission to the colleges to enroll the students in the academic year.

The colleges have to fulfill the requirements for renewal of permissions and if they fail, they are not given the permission to run the course and students suffer.

Also Read | NMC cancels MBBS, PG admissions in 3 medical colleges in Telangana

Q. Why did you file a complaint with CIC ?

A. Medical Council of Indian (MCI) used to upload medical college assessment reports on its website every year since 2011. In September 2020, MCI was replaced with NMC and a new website was created. NMC website - www.nmc.org.in has uploaded the documents containing rules and regulations and circulars of erstwhile MCI. The website also features the links of college assessment reports. However, when you click on the links to download or view the document, it will show you “not found” with “It looks like nothing was found at this location. Maybe try a search?”. Hence, the documents of medical college assessment reports are missing. What made them delete these documents ?

I was aware that in 2011 itself, CIC had asked MCI to disclose these reports and MCI used to upload it on its website. However, from 2020 onwards, NMC is not uploading these reports on its website. NMC does not have the power to refuse to disclose these reports to the public. NMC can not deny the MCI obligations and it has to be continued.

So, I wanted to know why they deleted the MCI reports and why they are not uploading reports for the last two academic years. I am not against any particular medical college. I do not have anything against any individual or college. I wanted to ensure the public accountability of NMC by asking the medical college reports.

I filed the RTI on March 9, 2022 in which I sought details on policy taken by the commission to not disclose assessment reports on the website and whether they received any order from the union health ministry or prime minister office (PMO) to not disclose these reports. I did not receive a reply from NMC within 30 days and I filed the first appeal on April 25, 2022. I received a reply on my RTI questions on June 13, 2022 in which Center Public Information Officers (CPIO) of NMC refused to furnish the details and said that it does not have directions, orders and advisory on record. The reply further said “the information sought is very voluminous and scattered” and “it would disproportionately divert the resources of Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB) of NMC”.

Dissatisfied with the response, I filed a complaint with CIC on June 21, 2022 requesting orders from CIC to NMC for providing the information I sought in my original RTI application. On March 2, 2023, I received a hearing order from CIC in which it asked me and NMC to submit a written response before the actual hearing that took place on March 28, 2023. Till March 20, there was no response from NMC but I filed my response containing my arguments. On March 21, NMC submitted to CIC that “we have taken a policy decision not to disclose the medical college assessment report”.

Q. What happened in the CIC hearing?

A. My argument during the hearing at CIC in New Delhi was that last year NMC said that there was no policy decision on disclosure of medical college assessment reports and this year, it is saying that “there is a policy decision not to disclose the medical college assessment report”. These are contradictory statements and only one out of the statements could be right. I told the CIC that either the CPIO of NMC has given me false information or is now misleading the CIC by providing false information.

Whether NMC took a policy decision or not, it does not have the powers not to disclose the reports because it is already ruled by CIC that medical college reports are public documents under Right To Information act and they are bound to disclose it to the public. I don't know why they are saying that they have taken the policy decision not to disclose the medical college assessment report.

Also Read | CIC directs NMC to upload medical college assessment reports on official website

Q. Do these reports help identify ghost faculties? Can that problem be addressed ?

A. We have been witnessing the problem of ghost faculties in medical colleges for the last 20-25 years. It is not new. Earlier in the medical college assessment reports, we could check the names of faculties present during the inspection of all the functioning colleges. We could then cross-check with other colleges to know whether a particular faculty is shown as a faculty in both the colleges.

Medical colleges were not transparent enough to prevent ghost faculties but there was at least something [the reports] for us to know and act against such practice. Now, even that minimum transparency is not there.

The number of medical colleges is increasing but we don’t know whether these colleges are fulfilling the required criteria or not.

NMC is coming up with an Aadhar-Based Biometric Attendance System. It is not new. Earlier, MCI proposed a biometric attendance system for faculties - Online Faculty Attendance Monitoring System (OFAMOS) and it was used to be updated real time on the MCI website. It was discontinued in 2019 after medical teachers opposed it.

Now, NMC has asked the colleges to adhere to the aadhar-enabled biometric attendance system. NMC does not have any legal back up to use Aadhar data for attendance. According to the Aadhar act, the data can be used for subsidy related schemes only. A ghost faculty in a private medical college has all the rights to refuse aadhar based biometric attendance system. He/She is empowered by Aadhar act which says an individual can refuse to give their aadhar number.

To already available problems, NMC is giving irrelevant solutions and further increasing the problems and administrative difficulties. Do we have to wait for the next 50 years for a solution ?

Also Read | Faculty shortage in medical colleges is hampering training of doctors

Q. What should NMC do to make medical college assessment reports public ?

A. Through RTI, I asked for medical college reports of each college for the academic year 2020-21 but NMC said that it is “very voluminous” for them. It was voluminous for MCI too but they did it.

NMC should give instructions to all medical colleges to scan previous academic year assessment reports and submit it to the commission through e-mail. It won’t take more than a day for NMC to download the reports and upload it on their website. Their willingness to disclose the report is the biggest issue.

Q. How do you see the functioning of NMC ?

A. MCI was much better than NMC. The sub-section 6 of section 6 of the NMC act, 2019 states that “chairperson and every member of the commission shall make declaration of his assets and his liabilities at the time of entering upon his office and at the time of demitting his office and also declare his professional and commercial engagement or involvement in such form and manner as may be prescribed, and such declaration shall be published on the website of the commission.”

It has been more than three years since implementation of NMC act but not even once has any member disclosed their assets and properties even though there is a mandate to do so. NMC is not even able to ensure adherence to its own rules.