Supreme Court advocate Tanvi Dubey opines that as per the directive of the apex court, doctors pursuing their MBBS internships should be provided with stipends. This is in connection to a directive passed by the apex court on October 16 while it was hearing a plea stating that 70% of medical colleges do not pay any stipend or are not paying the minimum set stipend to doctors pursuing their MBBS internships.
In a video shared with EdexLive, Tanvi Dubey said, "The petitioners who filed a writ petition were undergoing a one-year compulsory internship after their five-year MBBS course. While the writ petition was pending, they already completed their internship this March. So, in September while the Supreme Court passed directions, it also specifically records that a lump sum amount should be determined for the previous batch who took the initiative to file a writ petition for raising these concerns. So that's the beauty of that order."
Adding more to this, she said, "Also, there is a direction for this batch that regular stipend as per the regulation has to be paid to them. So this process has already been started and this has been immensely helpful. I have been told that there are so many expenses they have to incur from accommodation, travel to hostel costs and rural posting costs separately. So this is what the regulation provides that they should be provided with a one-year stipend."
Further, she also spoke about another concern which is that many medical colleges do not pay stipends. In this regard, she said that the court had taken note and the NMC was asked to submit a report. "The statement by CJI that 'It is not a bonded labour' is very true because we have seen students undergoing internships which are technically hospital duties with rigorous duties lasting for multiple hours."
"So as per the stipulation, they should be provided with a guaranteed stipend," she stressed, while speaking to EdexLive.
With regards to case, the Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud has granted four weeks time to the National Medical Commission (NMC) to get back. To recall, on September 15, the Supreme Court asked the NMC to address the allegation that stipends were not being paid to medical students. "These are all students who have finished four years... What is NMC doing? They allow big colleges to take crores and these poor students who work 20 hours a day, they are not paid at all," CJI said as stated by LiveLaw.in.
