The Medical Education Bill has been tabled at
the House of Representatives (HoR) on Sunday after being discussed in the Education and Health Committee.
Chairman of the committee Jayapuri Gharti submitted the report about the bill to the parliament during the HoR meeting on Sunday.
Discussion on the bill, that was passed by the committee on the basis of majority, will start from the next HoR meeting.
Chief Whip of Nepali Congress (NC) Bal Krishna Khand said the party will put different opinion about the bill in the House like its lawmakers did in the committee.
Dr Govinda KC has started his 16th fast-unto-death at the vacant building of the Urban Development Project in Ilam
Wednesday afternoon stating that
the medical education bill passed by the committee earlier on the day violated the agreement the government signed with him while breaking the last fast.
He has demanded that the agreement the government signed with him before ending his 15th fast-unto death on July 26, 2018 be implemented to the letter.
The bill, passed by the committee on the basis of majority despite opposition of four NC lawmakers, mainly violated three agreements signed with Dr KC.
The provision prohibiting a university from giving affiliation to more than five medical colleges has been weakened in the bill adding that those outside the Kathmandu Valley that have acquired letter of intent (LOI) can be given affiliation by the Tribhuvan University and the Kathmandu University.
B&C Hospital in Birtamode, Jhapa has acquired LOI from the Kathmandu University, that has already provided affiliation to at least five medical colleges, to operate a medical college.
The bill endorsed on Wednesday will pave the way for immediate affiliation to B&C. The agreement mentioned medical colleges to be opened outside Kathmandu Valley will have to comply with the policies to be formulated by the Medical Education Commission meaning B&C would have to wait for formation of the commission, and formulation of policies by the commission to get affiliation.
The second is formation of the all-powerful commission for regulation of medical education and to formulate policies about the sector. Dr KC suspects that the bill passed on Wednesday mentioned
Medical Education University to undermine the commission.
The third is the issue of Council for Technical Education and Vocational Training (CTEVT) that the government had agreed to phase out within five years as the Health Ministry has already announced it will not recruit human resources with qualification of just certificate level. But the bill passed Wednesday states that the CTEVT will continue until the government so wishes.
