HC relief for disabled doctors

Three handicapped doctors, who had been denied admission to post-graduate medical courses as the percentage of their disability exceeded the limit set by the Medical Council of India (MCI), were relieved when the Bombay high court ruled in their favour on Wednesday.

Three handicapped doctors, who had been denied admission to post-graduate medical courses as the percentage of their disability exceeded the limit set by the Medical Council of India (MCI), were relieved when the Bombay high court ruled in their favour on Wednesday.

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A division bench comprising chief justice Mohit Shah and justice DG Karnik directed the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) to consider Dr Pooja Kulkarni, Dr Manoj Langade and Dr Sangita Chaudhari, for admission to post-graduate medical courses. The three doctors had moved the high court on Wednesday through their counsel Pooja Thorat. Since the first round of admissions concluded on April 4, the high court has directed the DMER to consider them in the next round.

Under the MCI rules, a handicapped person is allowed to pursue a medical course only if the disability of his/her lower limbs is between 40% and 70%. Accordingly, all the three petitioners had been certified as being disabled between 40% and 70% at the time of seeking admission to the MBBS course.

However, when they applied for post-graduate courses, they were made to undergo a medical examination at the All India Institute of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, which found that their disability exceeded 85%, making them ineligible for any post-graduate medical course.