BENGALURU: Save for a small fraction, those who have completed their MBBS and MD courses in the state do not seem to be interested to serve in rural areas.
As per information available from the Department of Health and Family Welfare, of the around 4,000 candidates who received their MBBS and MD degrees and diplomas in 2016, only 12 candidates have opted for rural service.
In 2015, the state government issued an order mandating one year rural service for all students who receive their medical degrees from colleges in Karnataka. But this order was challenged in the High Court which has ordered a stay.
However, the state government filed a petition in the High Court seeking permission to announce voluntary rural service. “The court accepted our petition and allowed us to go ahead but only 12 out of 4,000 candidates have opted to join rural service ,” said a senior official of the Health and Family Welfare department.
“We are even trying to get the stay vacated and implement the mandatory rural service rule. The surprising thing is, candidates are ready to pay hefty penalties but are not ready for rural service,” added the official.
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The state government is making all efforts to implement the mandatory rural service rule. One such step is through the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) where it has made it mandatory for candidates to submit an undertaking agreeing for one year compulsory rural service or pay a penalty of `10 lakh. The Mandatory Rural Service Bill was passed by the previous BJP government and sent for the Presidential nod in 2012. A few months ago, President Pranab Mukherjee gave his assent to the Bill.
It is not just rural service, medical graduates are not even interested in joining government hospitals. In 2015, the state government had recruited 1,122 doctors at various levels from surgeons to general physicians. But 60 per cent of them did not report to work. It is not that their salaries are low. In fact, surgeons hired in Hyderabad-Karnataka region were offered `1.3 lakh per month while general physicians were offered `1 lakh a month.