"An entire batch of 45,000 doctors is lost to the workforce right now because of this delay. The resident doctors informed the Minister about the pressure and exhaustion they are facing thanks to the shortage of staff caused by the delay in NEET PG admissions. This prompted an objection from the apex court, which demanded a clear picture of the policy from the centre, and said it cannot just 'pull a number from thin air.' During the latest hearing for the case which was filed by a bunch of MBBS-qualified doctors, on November 25, the centre had said that it needed four weeks time to review the criteria of the EWS eligibility, which was set at an annual income of Rs 8 lakh, the same as that of the OBC criteria.
The petition against the reservation for the Other Backward Classes and the EWS in the All India Quota for NEET PG at 27% and 10% respectively is still in the Supreme Court.
A meeting with the striking doctors across the country has been scheduled for 5.00 pm today where the further course of action will be decided, said Dr Manish. The resident doctors had opted out of the Outpatient Department Services, and that strike will continue until they get an official word on the subject on Wednesday. Speaking with Edexlive, the President of the Federation of Residential Doctors Association, Dr Manish Kumar, said that the Minister has given a verbal assurance that the 'review' process for the criteria for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) reservation in the All India Quota, for which the centre had asked the Supreme Court four weeks time, will be given a major push, and is expected to be completed by this Wednesday, December 1. On strike since Saturday, November 27, over the endless delay in the NEET PG counselling, resident doctors across the country have approached the Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya to expedite the process and ease the burden on them.