NEW DELHI: The Centre appears to be backtracking on bringing pay parity for all undergraduate medical interns, in government and private medical colleges.
Earlier, the Union health ministry had twice written to the National Medical Commission (NMC) on “examining” the issue of pay parity. And NMC had accepted that there is no stipend parity.
The next step was for the NMC to amend provision of the Compulsory Rotating Medical Internship (CRMI) Regulations, 2021, which states that “all interns shall be paid stipend as fixed by the appropriate authority applicable to the institution/University or State.”
As for the Post-Graduate Medical Education (PGME) Regulation-2023, there is no distinction between interns working in government or private medical colleges.
The Supreme Court had on October 28, 2025 slammed the NMC for “dragging its feet” on non-payment of stipend to interns.
However, a recent RTI reply by the Medical Education Policy Section (MEP) under the health ministry said, “All matters relating to framing, amendment, and implementation of medical education regulations fall within the domain of NMC....Therefore, in view of the above, no further action is required to be taken by the MEP Section in the matter, as the subject falls within the domain of the National Medical Commission (NMC).”
The MEP had on April 2 responded to a query on pay parity by RTI activist, Dr KV Babu. Speaking with this paper, Dr Babu said, “Though the government initially took a proactive decision to amend CRMI regulations in line with PGME regulations, the nominated, almost vacant, Undergraduate Medical Education Board is not inclined to amend the norms for stipend.”