NMC Withdraws Guidelines, Creating Uncertainty for MBBS Admissions

The National Medical Commission (NMC) has created confusion for more than one lakh prospective undergraduate medical students by withdrawing the recently issued Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2023, for MBBS admissions. The guidelines, which included new rules on competency-based medical education (CBME) curriculum, recruitment of research personnel in medical colleges, family adoption programs, admissions under the disabled category, and the format for submission of admission information, were issued by the Commission on June 12.

The sudden withdrawal of these guidelines, without any explanation or indication of when new guidelines will be issued or which guidelines should be followed, has led to a lack of clarity on several important matters. The NMC's actions have caused frustration and uncertainty among students and parents, especially as the new academic year approaches.

Rohan Krishnan, the national chairman of the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), criticized the NMC for taking on more tasks than it can handle, resulting in confusion. He highlighted the Commission's failure to fulfill its basic responsibilities of accrediting proper colleges and providing robust and timely guidelines for the medical curriculum. According to Krishnan, the trend of issuing and withdrawing circulars has become a concerning pattern for the NMC, causing distress to students and parents.

While NMC officials have refrained from commenting on the issue, a new circular was issued, stating that the previous circular regarding the guidelines for undergraduate medical education stands withdrawn and canceled with immediate effect. However, this has raised further questions among students and parents regarding the implications of this withdrawal. They seek clarity on important matters, such as the fate of the NMC's earlier order for MBBS admissions to be completed before August 30 and scheduling the National Exit Test (NExT) exam to supersede NEET-PG.