As part of their degree course, the doctors are mandated to serve in rural areas. Bond rules require resident doctors to spend one year in medical colleges and two years in district and rural hospitals. The state health department assigns specific hospitals and departments to government medical college students.
This service is considered an integral part of the medical education, and students are expected to work as senior resident doctors after completing their postgraduate courses. Two years ago, the health department had issued a notification regarding this.
Now, after an investigation by the department, they have issued a formal notification naming the erring doctors, their respective bond postings, and the medical colleges they are affiliated with. The respective medical superintendents and vice-principals have also been informed of this action.
A top health department official expressed concern over the non-compliance of senior residents with bond rules, stating, “The question is why the senior residents are not joining work in the district hospital or rural hospital even after completing one year in the medical colleges as per bond rules. Before issuing the punitive action, the doctors were warned twice about the consequences of their non-compliance. Despite these warnings, they failed to rectify the situation.”
The list of doctors who face the fine includes senior residents from prominent institutions like Bankura Medical College, Burdwan Medical College, Uttar Bengal Medical College, Purulia Medical College, Calcutta Medical College, NRS Medical College, and R G Kar Medical College.
Dr Manas Gumta, a professor of surgery and member of the Joint Platform of Doctors, claimed that while the bond rule stipulates a fine of Rs 10 lakh per year for non-compliance, the responsibility for this issue “cannot be solely placed” on the resident doctors.
He said that hospital administration also plays a crucial role in releasing doctors after their one-year service period. Dr. Gumta suggested that political influence might have been involved in retaining some doctors and that blaming resident doctors without addressing “the systemic issues” would not resolve the problem.