The Hindu : New Delhi News : Medical Council polls next week

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 07, 2004

New Delhi

New Delhi

Medical Council polls next week

By Bindu Shajan Perappadan

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 6. Nearly six years after it was constituted, the Delhi Medical Council (DMC) will go to the polls next week to elect members to various posts in the organisation. And by no means would this be an easy "fight", claim insiders.

With the battle lines drawn, groups formed and a bit of political leaning showing -- the election promises to be an interesting one, guarantee city doctors. And the regular "fare" aside, the only thing missing is a structured manifesto and the nomination of woman members to the Council.

While the two main groups -- the Indian Medical Association (IMA) backed team and the group headed by current Delhi Medical Association (DMA) president, I.P. Dhalla claim that "if elected they would make the DMC working more effective' -- the only hitch is that neither group has done any work on their manifesto. "I am fighting elections based on the work done at the DMA where I have raised several important issues including that of quacks. What we propose to bring to the DMC is improved `working conditions' for physicians and also carry out work against quacks. There is no specific laid out manifesto,'' explains I.P. Dhalla who along with Prem Aggarwal is heading a team consisting of vice-president of the DMA Puneet Dhawan, S.H. Kukreja, general practioner G.S. Garewal, K.K. Kholi, Hemchand Gupta and Ashwini Dalmia from Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital. Also registering their presence are over two-dozen independents including S.P. Singh, Rajesh Bhatia, Ajay Ghabir and Anil Mittal.

But in this gamut no group has forwarded the name of any woman candidate and the only woman physician whose name did figure in the list was that of Tripata Gupta but it was shot down leaving the DMC elections minus any representation from women.

Speaking why the DMC elections are important, the president of the DMC Ranjit Roy Chaudhury, explains, "the Council is a statutory body which maintains the registration of medical practioners, prescribes code of ethics for regulating professional conduct, receive complaints from public (including patients and their relatives) and works towards the protection of its members.''

The other group in the election arena is the IMA-backed team where members have been handpicked for the slot. Those selected include former DMA presidents including Anil Bansal, V.K. Monga, S.C.L. Gupta and DMA past secretary Hansraj Satija and the secretary of the LNJP resident doctors association Manesh Munkal.

Speaking about what the group would bring along, the Honarary Secretary General of the IMA Vinay Aggarwal said: "We plan to make DMC doctor friendly, check quackery and become the voice of the city doctors that is our manifesto.''

Meanwhile, Dr. Chaudhury adds: "We have made doctors accountable and introduced continuing medical education and brought government, army and railways doctors under our umbrella. The problem areas where work needs to be done is accreditation of Delhi hospitals and setting minimum standards for doctors and hospitals.''

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