SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, May 15: Covid-19 or Russia-Ukraine war-affected foreign medical graduates (FMG) who completed their course online have to do two years of Internship in medical colleges while those students who cleared the examination by offline mode will have to undergo internship for only 12 months.
The NMC (National Medical Commission) has in this regard issued a notification ( May 9) for the management of medical colleges making it clear that those (FMG) who completed courses through online examinations have to do two years and offline qualified students only 12 months.
In the wake of Covid-19 and thereafter the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war many students studying in foreign medical colleges returned to India. Some of them completed graduation online and some through offline mode of examinations.
On the directive of the Supreme Court, they were given an opportunity to complete Internship through State Medical Council in the country.
In Jharkhand too, FMGs are completing internships in all five medical colleges MGMMCH Jamshedpur, SNMMCH Dhanbad, PJMCH Dumka, MMCH Palamu and SBMCH Hazaribagh. But sources in these medical colleges said the Jharkhand Medical Council has sent students for an Internship without clearing the duration of the Internship.
A principal of the newly created medical college of the state said that some interns have completed 12 months of internship but the Jharkhand Medical Council has not cleared whether they would perform 12 months or two years.
However, a senior professor of SNMMCH, when contacted, said there is no confusion in the duration of the Internship as the Supreme Court has already announced the cut-off date of June 2022. Those foreign medical graduates who attended online classes/examinations would have to do two years of Internship.
NMC through its notification ( May 9) has also made a clarification regarding the conduct of the Internship for FMGs.
The NMC notice has said the provision of two years Internship is applicable only to those Foreign Medical Graduates who were in the last year of their study of medical qualification and returned to India due to the Covid-19 or Russia-Ukraine war. After successful completion of the medical qualification, such FMGs are required to qualify for the FMG examination and subsequently undergo Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI) for a period of two years.
At the same time, the NMC has also made it clear that the FMGs who have completed their study from their respective university in offline mode shall undergo CRMI for a period of one year. The NMC has also cleared in its notice that FMG interns would be paid a stipend at par with the Indian medical graduate Interns.
