The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Court grants relief for PMC staff

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Tuesday, Nov 14, 2006
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Court grants relief for PMC staff

Special Correspondent

"They should be considered for selection under service quota for PG courses"

CHENNAI: Doctors and teaching staff of Perundurai Medical College (PMC) shall be considered as service candidates for admission to postgraduate degree/MDS/diploma courses in Government medical/dental colleges in Tamil Nadu, the Madras High Court has ruled.

A Division Bench comprising Justices P. Sathasivam and S. Tamilvanan passed the order on a batch of writ appeals and a writ petition.

The point under consideration was whether the Government had "pervasive control" over the PMC and whether doctors and teaching faculty of the college were entitled for admission to PG courses under in-service quota.

Single judge's ruling

While a single judge ruled that members of the Institute of Road Transport (IRT), Perundurai Medical College and Hospital Doctors and Teaching Staff Association were service candidates, the Selection Committee for Higher Speciality Courses said it was a "self-financing private medical college."

The judges, holding that the IRT was an instrumentality or agency of the Government, said the society came into existence after the Government announced it in the Assembly. Its governing council was dominated by Government officers. Admission and administration ofs the institution were being conducted in a manner prescribed by the Government.

"It explicitly exposes the pervasive dominance and control of the Government over the society," they said, adding that IRT itself was shown to be under the control of the Transport Department of the Government.

Public sector unit

Only doctors working in other Government Hospitals were sent to the PMC on deputation basis, and the identity cards issued to them showed the PMC to be a public sector unit under the control of the Government.

The judges then said, "Once it is established that the Government has/having control over the PMC and the IRT, then it is automatic that the doctors serving therein should be considered for selection under service quota for PG courses."

Pointing out that the Government had taken over the Ramalingam Tuberculosis Sanatorium for the medical college and that an initial allotment of Rs. 20 crore was made, besides the annual budgetary allocation, the judges said: "... to stray from the original stand and to state that the Government is in no way concerned with the PMC or IRT is a hard pill to swallow. Thus, it is crystal clear that the institution is financially, functionally and administratively controlled by Government."

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