The Indian Medical Association (IMA) has strongly opposed the Centre’s move to scrap Medical Council of India (MCI) and bring in the proposed National Medical Commission.
The members of IMA, Belagavi branch, came out of their clinics and hospitals on Wednesday and, without affecting the emergency services, took out a procession. The protest was led by IMA Belagavi president Rajesh Latkar and secretary Anil Patil. Later, they submitted a memorandum to the Deputy Commissioner.
Mr. Patil said IMA is against the replacement of MCI with NMC, but not against making amendments to the MCI Act without compromising on the autonomy of the profession. The other demands include punishment only for sex-selective abortion and not for clerical errors, ensuring prescription of scheduled drugs only by the modern medicine graduates, and the introduction of a Central Act to protect doctors and private hospitals from violence. The private healthcare sector caters to about 85 per cent of the population but is systematically being crushed by the introduction of “unjust regulations” favouring the super-rich corporate sector, the IMA members said.