Stop MD courses being run minus nod at three hospitals: Calcutta high court

KOLKATA: A division bench of Calcutta High Court Chief Justice TBN Radhakrishnan and Justice Arijit Banerjee has asked the state government to take steps to stop MD courses reportedly being run at three private hospitals in the state, including two in Kolkata.
Expressing surprise at the fact that courses were being held without the required permission, the court sought the state’s intervention.The court was responding to a public interest litigation filed by Human Protection and Awareness Organization last week, in which the NGO claimed that Medica Superspecialty Hospital, Peerless Hospital and Durgapur Mission Hospital held MD courses in emergency medicine without the approval of either the Medical Council of India or the central government. The MCI and the state government were asked by the court to file a report on the matter.
In their report, the MCI and the state claimed on Friday that none of the three hospitals had approval for the course. “These courses are being run without permission,” said Debashish Saha, counsel for the petitioner.
While Medica claimed the course was being run in collaboration with a reputable foreign university and was discontinued a year ago, Peerless pointed out that their course was more like a training programme. “We had launched an MD course in emergency medicine in collaboration with George Washington University, USA, in 2017. It did not have an approval, though we had asked for it. We have discontinued the course last year,” said Medica CEO Alok Ray.
But Peerless said it would enter a legal battle to seek recognition for the course and continue it. “We had never claimed that it was a conventional MD course. We had started it several years ago to help young doctors prepare better to deal in emergency medicine and care. Many have benefited from the course,” said chief executive officer Sudipta Mitra.