CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association (TNMOA) has urged the state government to explore all legal options, including approaching a larger bench of the Supreme Court, to protect the 50% super-speciality (SS) seats reserved for in-service doctors.

In a representation to Health Minister K G Arunraj and health secretary Darez Ahamed, TNMOA state general secretary Dr M Akilan appealed to the government not to surrender unfilled MD/MCh super-speciality seats to the All India Quota (AIQ).

According to the association, of the 219 seats earmarked for in-service doctors this academic year, only 68 have been filled so far, leaving 151 seats vacant.

The association pointed out that the Supreme Court, in an interim order in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 53 of 2022, had permitted Tamil Nadu to conduct counselling for the 50% in-service quota and hold multiple rounds of counselling to fill the seats.

Doctors admitted under this quota execute bonds committing them to remain in government service until superannuation, thereby strengthening specialist services in government hospitals, it said.

However, after two rounds of counselling failed to fill all the seats, a petition was filed seeking the transfer of the vacant in-service quota seats to the AIQ. The move resulted in the suspension of further counselling, the association alleged.

The TNMOA also expressed hope that the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test for Super Speciality (NEET-SS) qualifying percentile, which has been lowered repeatedly in recent years, even to zero percentile on some occasions, could be reduced again to facilitate filling the remaining seats.

Warning that surrendering the seats would adversely affect patients dependent on government hospitals for advanced treatment, the association urged the state to initiate fresh legal proceedings to safeguard the quota.

Meanwhile, Dr P Saminathan, president of the Service Doctors and Post Graduates Association (SDPGA), said many doctors were hesitant to pursue super-speciality courses due to limited promotion opportunities and the absence of adequate new specialist posts in medical colleges.

He said most specialists were posted in hospitals under the Directorate of Medical Services rather than in teaching institutions under the Directorate of Medical Education, reducing the attractiveness of super-speciality courses for government doctors.

According to him, counselling commenced in April and 68 candidates accepted allotments in the first round, leaving 151 seats vacant. Before the second round could be completed, litigation seeking transfer of the unfilled seats to the AIQ stalled the counselling process.

Separately, PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss urged the state government to challenge the SC’s recent order directing the surrender of the 151 vacant super-speciality seats reserved for government doctors to the AIQ.

In a statement, Anbumani said the seats, created with public funds, should remain within the state system and called for an appeal before a larger bench of the apex court. He argued that the quota was vital for ensuring the availability of super-specialists in government hospitals.

Noting that 215 of the 670 super-speciality seats in Tamil Nadu’s government medical colleges are reserved for in-service doctors, he said candidates admitted under the quota are required to continue in government service until retirement.