The Jammu and Kashmir government is considering implementing a mandatory two-year service bond for medical students from other states and union territories who pursue postgraduate medical courses in the region, as reported by Greater Kashmir.
Sakeena Masood, Minister for Health and Medical Education, recently met with a delegation of MD and MS aspirants from J&K.
Speaking to Greater Kashmir, the health minister said that while out-of-state doctors pursuing MD and MS in J&K are not required to sign service bonds, J&K doctors studying outside the region are often subjected to two to three years of service bond obligations.
Masood mentioned that she had already raised the issue with the Secretary of Health and Medical Education and that the department is currently reviewing it.
She indicated that the government might soon mandate a minimum two-year service bond for out-of-state students studying medicine in J&K.
The meeting with the delegation was focused on the concerns over the recently revised reservation policy, which the aspirants believe has adversely affected opportunities for unreserved category students.
The delegation highlighted that the Open Merit (OM) quota for MD and MS seats had been reduced to a mere 30-40 per cent due to changes in the policy, diminishing the chances for merit-based selection.
The aspirants presented a memorandum outlining their demands for policy reforms, including the rationalisation of reservation rules, the implementation of fair service bonds, and revisions to the existing reservation system.
The memorandum emphasised three main demands:
Rationalisation of the reservation policy, which they argued is arbitrary and discriminatory.
The removal of Rule 17 of the Reservation Rules of 2005, which they believe gives an undue advantage to reserved categories.
The introduction of service bonds for all postgraduate courses and MBBS, with a minimum period of five years and a penalty of Rs 10 lakh for those opting out of the All-India Quota.
The issue of reservation has been a source of growing discontent in J&K in recent months, particularly among those who feel that the system undermines merit-based admissions.
Following the release of the first list of NEET-PG Counselling by the J&K Board of Professional Entrance Examinations, there has been widespread dissatisfaction, with only 29.6 per cent of the candidates from the Open Merit category being selected.
