BENGALURU: The state government has decided to follow the Karnataka High Court’s recent judgment that nursing colleges in the state do not need recognition from the Indian Nursing Council (INC).
In the wake of the judgment, Medical Education Minister Dr Sharan Prakash Patil on Wednesday convened a meeting where the decision was taken. The meeting was attended by department officials as well as the INC president.
In the three-hour long meeting, the minister also requested the INC to take measures to upload the list of nursing colleges in the state on its official website.
After the meeting, Patil said, “We have to follow the court order and, at the same time, we have to follow the INC Act. Section 12 of the Act permits INC to have control over nursing colleges when it comes to quality issue. So we have to look at that angle also.”
The minister also said he will call both groups — one who wants INC and the other who do not want it — for a meeting. “We are hoping to arrive at a common ground to resolve the issue as students are anxious. We do not want any confrontation and want to resolve this confusion. We will do it as per law,” the minister said.
Earlier this week, a section of nursing college managements approached the High Court which passed an order that the INC had no authority to grant recognition to nursing colleges and had restrained the INC from publishing on its website that institutions have to obtain recognition from it. However, another section of nursing colleges are insisting on INC recognition.
Vinu Thomas, general secretary of the Karnataka Pravasi Congress, who was part of a nursing college delegation who met the minister and CM a few weeks ago, said they would approach the apex court against the verdict of the High Court. “We cannot let the interests of the students suffer. If our colleges do not have INC approval, then these students will not have a degree that is valued globally. Their job prospects will dwindle,” he said.
Root cause
In May 2017, the INC had withdrawn recognition for all nursing colleges in Karnataka and removed their names from its website. This was following a state government order on December 2016 that INC recognition was not necessary for state nursing colleges.
400 Nursing colleges are present in the state, of which 257 have INC approval.