Part 1 to Part 8 attachments | Satyagrah Clippings | Images from various branches |
Part 1
IMA Satyagraha: 16th November
Dear Colleague,
IMA has waited for one year since it postponed its Satyagraha scheduled on 16th November 2015. In the last one year, the Ministry of Health, Government of India has not taken our demands seriously.
On the contrary, they have decided to abolish Medical Council of India and replace it with a National Medical Commission. National Medical Commission will be constituted by members nominated by Government of India and roughly half of them will be non medical persons.
Ayurvedics, Homeopaths and others will get registration in NMC through Schedule IV. Private medical colleges will be let free to fleece the students.
Medical graduates will have to take a licentiate exam after final MBBS to practice as a doctor.
To recapitulate, IMA wants the following:
Withdrawal of proposed NMC Bill and suitable amendments in Indian Medical Council Act, maintaining the professional autonomy.
Insulation of doctors by bringing a Central Act against violence on doctors and hospitals.
Amendment in Consumer Protection Act to cap the compensations.
Suitable amendments in Clinical Establishment Act to change the licensing system to an accreditation system and to exclude single doctor clinics from CEA.
Suitable amendments in PCPNDT Act by which only acts linked with sex selective abortion are penalized and not clerical errors.
Proper implementation of rights to prescribe Scheduled Drugs exclusively by modern medicine doctors.
We expect all States and Local Branches of IMA to organize a peaceful dharna before the district collectorate on 16th November 2016 from 11am to 1 pm.
Invite the Media and release a standard press release.
Submit the standard memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister to the district magistrate. Kindly ensure that the dharna is successful and a large number of doctors participate.
A further plan of action will follow.
Photographs of the dharna along with the press note may be released in the regional and national press with a copy to IMA HQs.
Injustice to doctors has been taken so casually by the Government. Let us unite in the cause of generations of upcoming doctors.
| Dr S S Aggarwal National President |
Dr K K Aggarwal National President Elect |
Dr A. Marthanda Pillai Imm. Past National President |
| Dr R N Tandon HSG Elect |
D. Ravi Wankhedkar National President-2018 |
Dr R.V.Asokan Chairman, Action Committee |
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PART 2
Standard Curtain Raiser Press Release: For Immediate Release
State/District:
3rd November 2016 Date: IMA
IMA Satyagraha on 16th November
“All the 30 State Branches and 1765 Local Branches of IMA are organizing a 2-hour Dharna as part of Stop NMC Satyagraha, in every district in India from 11 am 1 pm on 16th November.
“Last year, we had postponed our Satyagraha scheduled for16th November2015 on the favourable assurances received from the Government of India” said Dr S S Agarwal, National President, IMA.
The dharna is organized as a reminder to the Government to intervene and sort out the major problems faced by the medical profession” said Dr K K Aggarwal, National President Elect and Honorary Secretary General, IMA.
“Not only the inter-ministerial committee slept over the issues, the Government of India has gone ahead with scrapping of MCI and is replacing it with a totally nominated body called National Medical Commission. The bill is anti people in character” said Dr A Marthanda Pillai, Immediate Past National President, IMA.
“On 16th November thousands of doctors across the country will participate in the dharna, press meet and will hand over a memorandum addressed to the Prime Minister to the respective district magistrates” said Dr Ravi Wankhedkar, National President Elect 2018 IMA.
In a joint statement, Dr R N Tandon, incoming Honorary Secretary General and Dr R V Asokan, Chairman, Action Committee said the “NMC has authority to allow private medical colleges to fix their own rate for 60-99% of the MBBS and postgraduate seats”.
Dr…………………………State President IMA and Dr………………………Branch president IMA in a joint statement said Ayurvedics, Homeopaths and others will get registration in modern medicine through Schedule IV of NMC. This will affect the Patient Care and Patient Safety. We will give six weeks to the Government to meet our demands or will be forced to take further course of action.
IMA has been fighting for the following 6 demands:
• To stop NMC and to suitably amend Indian Medical Council Act without compromising the autonomy of the profession.
• Capping of compensation under Consumer Protection Act.
• Amendments to abolish license Raj and exemption to single doctor clinics in Clinical Establishment Act.
ï‚· Punitive punishments only for sex selective abortion and not for clerical errors under PC PNDT Act.
• A Central Act to protect doctors and hospitals from violence.
• To prevent unscientific mixing of modern medicine and indigenous systems. Scheduled drugs to be prescribed only by modern medicine graduates.
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PART 3
To,
Shri Narender Modi Ji,
Honourable Prime Minister of India
Respected Sir,
Indian Medical Association is the largest Medical Association of the world. IMA is a voluntary body constituted by doctors practicing modern system of medicine. It represents the collective consciousness of over 2.7 Lakh doctors in all the 686 districts of India organised in 30 state and1765 Local Branches.
Indian doctors have contributed significantly in achieving millennium developmental goals and are now working hard to achieve sustainable developmental goals including reduction in maternal mortality, infant mortality, road-traffic accident deaths, HIV, TB and Malaria reduction. IMA is actively participating in Swachh Bharat Swasth Bharat Abhiyan and Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matratav Abhiyan. IMA as a nation builder has volunteered its services for the success of all the national programmes.
We are concerned about the threat perceived by the profession in general and hardship suffered by individual doctors in particular. To be able to participate in various national health programmes and continue giving our best to the community, we need your intervention in the following:
Anywhere in the world, medical profession is bestowed with reasonable autonomy. This autonomy is to provide the flexibility required to keep pace of the rapidly advancing science. Patient care and Patient safety are the main benefits of such autonomy. Regulators need to have autonomy and be independent of Administrators. The proposed National Medical Commission will be a regulator appointed by Administrators under their direct control. IMA supports suitable amendments in the existing IMC Act. IMA is against scrapping it totally and making it a non autonomous body.
It abolishes Medical Council of India and along with that the section 16.1.b of MCI Act which says that the basic qualification to practise modern medicine is MBBS.
It takes away the voting right of every doctor in India to elect their medical council. Medical council of India is a representative body of the medical profession in India. Roughly 2/3rd of its members are elected through various electoral processes. Any registered medical practitioner in the country can contest the elections and every qualified doctor can vote. Abolishing a democratic institution and replacing it by a totally nominated body is certainly a retrograde step and is unacceptable.
It allows private medical colleges to charge at free will nullifying whatever solace NEET brought.
Inducting non medical persons in the highest regulator of medical profession takes away the perspective and character of the sacrosanct institution.
Instituting a Medical Licentiate exam after qualifying in final MBBS exam is an injustice and as such is insensitive to the plight of medical students who even otherwise have to undergo a long and tortuous academic career chequered with highly competitive exams.
Professional organisations like IMA are registered under societies Act. In no way their independence and freedom of action could be subjected to Government control through National Medical Commission. In fact they remain the only whistle blowers, being the voice of voiceless in the issues of Health. Such corrective forces are part and parcel of the democratic forces in the country.
This is not the first time that the Government has made such a move. In 2005, the then Union health minister, Dr Anbumani Ramadoss, tried unsuccessfully to bring in a legislation to dissolve the MCI and set up another council under the control of the Health Ministry. The Indian Medical Association, along with other professional bodies, opposed this move. Nevertheless, the legislation was drafted and placed before the cabinet for approval to bring in an ordinance. The Prime Minister’s Office referred this bill to a standing committee of Parliament on health. The standing committee rejected it on the ground that any regulatory body should be devoid of Government control or else it would lose its independent regulatory mechanism.
It is pertinent to note that in its exhaustive report the standing committee took exception to the attempt by the Government of India to centralize the powers with itself and reduce down a Body of Experts created for a distinct purpose by a Parliamentary enactment into a Department working under the Government of India.
There is a paradigm shift in the behaviour of the society towards doctors and health staff. Medical Professionals need protection in work place. This can be addressed by notifying doctors and health staff under the category of Deemed Public Servant. A Central Law on the lines of “Delhi Medicare Service Personnel & Medicare Service Institutions Act or 17 such State Laws protecting doctors and health staff is the need of the hour.
Being a social profession, the fee of doctors is reasonable and often capped by medi-claim, CGHS, PSUs and the market forces. Medical Profession expects quid pro qu capping in compensation when it is awarded against a doctor. Already compensation for a mishap in a clinical trial has been capped.
The hospitals today are being governed by Clinical Establishment (Registration and Regulation) Act 2013. This has ushered in License Raj in a sector which has brought much laurels to India. The Licensing character of the bill should be replaced by accreditation. The Act also envisages fixing of various charges in the hospital and setting protocols for various illnesses. Both are unacceptable. It is also prayed that atleast single doctor clinics should be exempted from CEA.
IMA demands a single window registration for hospitals and health care establishments under state medical councils. IMA also wants a single window regulation for medical negligence under the State Medical Council .
IMA is for stringent punishment to any doctor who indulges in sex selective abortions. However, IMA is against penal provisions under PCPNDT Act or under other Acts where doctors are booked for clerical mistakes.
Practicing modern medicine is not beyond risk and it takes 10 years of learning. There is no way by a six months or 1 year course, AYUSH doctors or others could be trained to practice modern system of medicine. In an emergency, improper treatment can lead to death.
IMA has been raising these points with the Ministry repeatedly. IMA even announced a Satyagraha which was scheduled on 16th of November, 2015 but on the intervention of Shir J P Nadda, Hon’ble Minister of Health & Family Welfare, it was postponed and an Inter - Ministerial Committee was formed on 13th November, 2015 with a mandate to come out with solution within 6 weeks. But nothing has happened so far.
IMA is now forced to organise Satyagraha on 16th November 2016, The International Tolerance Day, and expects the Government’s intervention to solve the problems of medical profession once for all. Our demands are for the welfare of the community and to help the Government in implementing its programmes.
We are confident that our issues will get mentioned in your next “Mann Ki Baat”.
We hope to get our issues solved in the next six weeks.
With kind regards,
Yours sincerely,
Dr S S Aggarwal (National President)
Dr K K Aggarwal (National President Elect)
Dr Marthanda Pillai (Immediate Past National President)
Dr Ravi Wankhedkar (National President Elect 2018)
Dr R N Tandon HSG Elect
Dr R V Asokan Chairman Action Committee
.....................State President
.....................Branch President
Copy to:
President of India
Health Minister of India
Chief Minister of the State
Health Ministry of the State
District Magistrate
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PART 4 (Images attached)
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PART 5 (Images attached)
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PART 6
Dear Colleagues,
IMA Satyagraha is being planned for 16th November, 2016.
A copy of the draft letter to the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, action plan along with a Press Release to be circulated in the next 1 or 2 days has been circulated to you all.
The following IMA leaders will coordinate PA India Dharnas
|
North India |
Dr R N Tandon |
|
West India |
Dr. Ravi Wankhedkar |
|
East India |
Dr S N P Singh |
|
South India |
Dr. R.V. Asokan |
|
Central India |
Dr. Arvind Jain |
With kind regards,
Yours sincerely,
Dr K K Aggarwal
National President (Elect); &
Honorary Secretary General, IMA
PART 7
To,
The Presidents & Hony. Secretaries
All State/Local Branches of IMA
Dear Colleague,
As you are aware that IMA is planning a Satyagraha on 16th November, 2016.
Kindly use your good office to release the already sent Press Release in your State/Local Media.
Kindly also involve the State/Local President & Secretary of the respective States/Branches of IMA.
Please translate the Press Release in the regional language for release.
The name of the State/Local President or Hony. Secretary may be filled in the Press Release.
Kindly release it in the next 48 hours and clippings of the same may be sent to IMA HQs.
A sample copy of the letter addressed to Hon’ble Prime Minister of India is also attached herewith to be given on 16th. The letter has enough background information.
Arrange for 2 hours Dharna on 16th
More details will follow
With kind regards,
Yours sincerely,
Dr K K Aggarwal
National President (Elect); &
Honorary Secretary General, IMA
PART 8
Dear Colleague
You can also sign the IMA petition on IMA website
We are starting from where we last last year, 41622
Circulate the link all over the country
Dr KK Aggarwal