VIJAYAWADA: The crisis surrounding Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) in the state has intensified, with hundreds of medical graduates staging protest for the past five days, demanding Permanent Registration (PR) to practice in India.
The students allege a lack of proper communication between the AP Medical Council (APMC) and the National Medical Commission (NMC), which resulted in a year-long uncertainty and inaction.
Tensions reached a boiling point on Friday when protesting FMGs attempted to meet APMC Chairman Dr Daggumati Sreehari Rao, but were forcibly removed by police. A video showing a woman police officer dragging a female doctor by her hair went viral on social media, sparking outrage.
Dr T Lakshmi Manasa, an FMG, who finished her MBBS in Ukraine, completed her internship at King George Hospital, Visakhapatnam.
We followed all NMC’s directions, contend FMGs
Speaking to TNIE, she said, “I received an email from APMC after completing my internship, saying I must now undergo another year of clerkship. My juniors have already received their PRs in neighbouring states within a year and have appeared for NEET PG. Why is there a delay in my case?” She demanded the immediate issuance of PRs, internship completion certificates, and the release of her pending stipend, which has been withheld for over a year.
Another FMG, Kunche Ramya from Ayyavari Rudravaram, faced a similar fate. Despite completing her internship at Nimra College, she was instructed to complete two years of clerkship in addition to the one-year internship, raising concerns over inconsistency. “Why was Lakshmi Manasa asked to do a one-year clerkship while I was told to do two?” she questioned.
Amid growing outrage, Dr Ambati Naga Radhakrishna Yadav, Chairman of the YSRCP NTR District Doctors’ Wing, wrote to the Governor seeking immediate intervention.
APMC Chairman Dr Daggumati Sreehari Rao, speaking to TNIE, said, “The FMGs who passed the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination in January 2023 were allotted internships in AP medical colleges for the first time. Allotments were made as per the NMC’s instructions.”
He added that the general body of the APMC had already resolved on June 17 to issue PRs to FMGs with valid compensatory certificates and one-year internships, as per NMC’s June 19 guidelines, but the decision is yet to be implemented.
Registrar of APMC Dr Ramesh, whose handling of the issue has stirred controversy, told TNIE, “The NMC in November and December 2023 issued fresh guidelines stating that FMGs, who studied penultimate and final years online while in India, must complete two years of clerkship and one-year of internship due to lost clinical exposure. Those who studied only the final year online must do a one-year clerkship and then one-year internship.”
However, FMGs argue they followed the NMC’s directions and submitted all documentation. Meanwhile, protests intensified after some FMGs met with former CM YS Jagan Mohan Reddy and gained YSRCP leaders’ backing, leading to viral clips of police aggression.
Speaking on the issue, Dr AV Subba Reddy, State President of the AP Private Hospitals and Nursing Homes Association, said, “All other states are granting PRs after one-year internships as directed by the NMC. Only Andhra Pradesh is demanding two to three years, without verifying compensatory certificates scientifically.”
He urged that if doubts exist, verification through embassies and temporary registration with affidavits should be allowed, instead of punishing the students indefinitely.