Relax guidelines, allow Ukraine-returned medicos to study in India: AIADMK

Chennai: AIADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam on Tuesday sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's immediate intervention to relax relevant guidelines and facilitate the Ukraine-returned MBBS students to continue their studies in Indian medical colleges.

It is understood from the guidelines of the National Medical Commission that those students who qualify for the NEET examination alone can get admission into the medical colleges in India, he claimed. "This is an obstacle for the Ukraine-returned MBBS students to get admission in Indian medical colleges," Panneerselvam said.

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In a letter addressed to the Prime Minister, a copy of which was made available to the media here, the former Chief Minister said the NMC has allowed the Ukraine-returned MBBS students to complete their mandatory 12-month internship in India provided they clear the foreign medical graduate examination before applying for such internship in India.

"On account of this, the total number of affected students came down approximately to 12,000," he said. A total of 14,000 Indian medical students, including 1,900 from Tamil Nadu, enrolled in various universities of Ukraine have returned to India and they have been passing through severe stress and nervousness due to their uncertain future, Panneerselvam said.

"The fate of Indian medical students rescued from the war-hit Ukraine hangs in balance. They have spent lakhs of rupees with a hope that they will become doctors.. They have returned to India in the hope that the central government will make adequate arrangements to pursue their studies in India," the AIADMK coordinator said in the letter.

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Parents are more worried about the uncertainty of their children and they are of the firm belief that the Prime Minister who is the guiding light for all, alone can find a solution to this problem, he said. "I, therefore, request you to kindly intervene in this matter urgently and advise the NMC to relax the relevant guidelines, as a special case, to enable the Ukraine-returned MBBS students to continue their studies in the medical colleges in India," Panneerselvam urged.