Medical students to serve 3yrs in Odisha tribal areas after passing out

IBNlive, Jan 14, 2012
Bhubaneswar, Jan 14 (PTI) Students interested to study medical science in Odisha have to sign agreements with the college authorities committing to serve three years in tribal dominated districts after passing out from the state-run medical colleges, official sources said today. A notification in this regard was issued by health and family welfare department making it clear that the students need to sign agreements before being formally admitted to any of the three state run medical colleges. In case a student does not accept the condition, the seat meant for him/her would be rejected and kept vacant for the year, the notification issued yesterday said. The students who do not sign the bond would not be allowed admission in any government medical college, director medical education and training (DMET), P K Dash said adding medical degree holders have to pay penalty in case of default. According to the conditions in the bond, the students passing out from the government medical colleges would have to serve at least three years in tribal dominated districts and in backward KBK (Kalahandi-Bolangir-Koraput) region. "In case of default, the medical degree holders will have to pay Rs 5 lakh to Rs 15 lakh," Dash said adding that while a MBBS pass out student has to pay Rs 5 lakh as penalty for breaking the agreement, a post-graduate students will have to pay Rs 10 lakh and a super speciality course degree holder need to make a payment of Rs 15 lakh. Similarly, the students of the state-run nursing schools and colleges will also sign agreement committing to serve in remote areas of the state. The state has three medical colleges at Cuttack, Berhampur and Burla with 150 MBBS seats each. The decision of making it mandatory for the students to serve three years in the remote areas came in view of acute scarcity of doctors in tribal dominated districts. "We are facing difficulties in providing health service to people in remote areas as most of the students passing out from medical colleges go outside the state or serve in urban areas," a senior official at the health department said here. PTI AAM SKN