 bill no  279 of  2017 the national medical commission bill, 2017—————— arrangement of clauses—————— chapter i preliminary clauses1 short title, extent and commencement 2 definitions chapter ii the national medical commission3 constitution of national medical commission 4 composition of commission 5 search committee for appointment of chairperson and members 6 term of office and conditions of service of chairperson and members 7 removal of chairperson and member of commission 8 appointment of secretary, experts, professionals, officers and other employees ofcommission9 meetings, etc, of commission10 powers and functions of commission chapter iii the medical advisory council11 constitution and composition of medical advisory council12 functions of medical advisory council 13 meetings of medical advisory council chapter iv national eligibility-cum-entrance test and examination14 national eligibility-cum-entrance test 15 national licentiate examination chapter v autonomous boards16 constitution of autonomous boards 17 composition of autonomous boards 18 search committee for appointment of president and members 19 term of office and conditions of service of president and members 20 advisory committees of experts 21 staff of autonomous boards 22 meetings, etc, of autonomous boards clauses23 powers of autonomous boards and delegation of powers 24 functions of  under-graduate medical education board 25 functions of  post-graduate medical education board 26 functions of  medical assessment and rating board 27 powers and functions of  ethics and medical registration  board 28 permission for establishment of new medical college 29 criteria for approving or disapproving scheme 30 state medical councils 31 national register and state register 32 rights of persons to have licence to practice and to be enrolled in national registeror state register and their obligations thereto33 bar to practice chapter vi recognition of medical qualifications34 recognition of medical qualifications granted by universities or medical institutionsin india35 recognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside india 36 recognition of medical qualifications granted by statutory or other body in india 37 withdrawal of recognition granted to medical qualification granted by medicalinstitutions in india38 derecognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside india 39 special provision in certain cases for recognition of medical qualifications chapter vii grants, audit and accounts40 grants by central government 41 national medical commission fund42 audit and accounts 43 furnishing of returns and reports to central government chapter viii miscellaneous44 power of central government to give directions to commission and autonomousboards45 power of central government to give directions to state governments46 information to be furnished by commission and publication thereof 47 obligation of universities and medical institutions 48 completion of courses of studies in medical institutions 49 joint sittings of commission, central councils of  homoeopathy and indian medicineto enhance interface between their respective systems of medicine50 chairperson, members, officers of commission and of autonomous boards to bepublic servants (iii) clauses51 protection of action taken in good faith 52 cognizance of offences 53 power of central government to supersede commission 54 power to make rules 55 power to make regulations 56 rules and regulations to be laid before parliament 57 power to remove difficulties 58 repeal and saving 59 transitory provisionsthe  schedule bill no  279 of  2017 the national medical commission bill, 2017 a billto provide for a medical education system that ensures availability of adequate and highquality medical professionals; that encourages medical professionals to adopt latest medical research in their work and to contribute to research; that has an objective periodic assessment of medical institutions and facilitates maintenance of a medical register for india and enforces high ethical standards in all aspects of medical services; that is flexible to adapt to changing needs and has an effective grievance redressal mechanism and for matters connected therewith or incidental theretobe it enacted by parliament in the sixty-eighth year of the republic of india as follows:— chapter i preliminary1 (1) this act may be called the national medical commission act, 20175(2) it extends to the whole of indiashort title, extent and commencement(3) it shall come into force on such date as the central government may, by notification in the official gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this act and any reference in any such provision to the commencement of this act shall be construed as a reference to the coming into force of that provision102 in this act, unless the context otherwise requires,—definitions(a) "autonomous board" means any of the autonomous boards constituted under section 16;(b) "chairperson" means the chairperson of the  national medical commission appointed under section 5;5(c) "commission" means the national medical commission constituted under section 3;(d) "council" means the medical advisory council constituted under section 11;(e) "ethics and medical registration  board" means the board constituted under section 16;10(f) "health university" means a university specialised in affiliating institutions engaged in teaching medicine, medical and health sciences and includes a medical university and university of health sciences;(g) "licence" means a licence to practice medicine granted under sub-section (1)of section 32;15(h) "medical assessment and rating board" means the board constituted under section 16;(i) "medical institution" means any institution, within or outside india, which grants degrees, diplomas or licences in medicine;20(j) "medicine" means modern scientific medicine in all its branches and includes surgery and obstetrics, but does not include veterinary medicine and surgery;(k) "member" means a member of the commission appointed under section 5and  includes the chairperson thereof;21 of 1860(l) "national board of examination" means the body registered as such under the societies registration act, 1860 which grants broad specialty and super-specialty qualifications referred to in the schedule;25(m) "national register" means a national medical register maintained by the ethics and medical registration board under section 31;(n) "notification" means notification published in the official gazette and the expression "notify" shall be construed accordingly;30(o) "post-graduate medical education board" means the board constituted under section 16;(p) "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under this act; (q) "president" means the president of an autonomous board appointed under section 18;35(r) "recognised medical qualification" means a medical qualification recognised under section 34 or section 35 or section 36 or section 39, as the case may be;(s) "regulations" means the regulations made by the commission under this act; (t) "schedule" means the schedule to this act;40(u) "state medical council" means a medical council constituted under any law for the time being in force in any state or union territory for regulating the practice and registration of practitioners of medicine in that state or union territory;(v) "state register" means a register maintained under any law for the time being in force in any state or union territory for registration of  practitioners of medicine;(w) "under-graduate medical education board" means the board constituted under section 16;3 of 1956(x) "university" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in clause (f) of section 2 of the university grants commission act, 1956 and includes a health university5 chapter ii the national medical commission3 (1) the central government shall constitute a commission, to be known as the national medical commission, to exercise the powers conferred upon, and to perform the functions assigned to it, under this act10constitution of national medical commission(2) the commission shall be a body corporate by the name aforesaid, having perpetual succession and a common seal, with power, subject to the provisions of this act, to acquire, hold and dispose of property, both movable and immovable, and to contract, and shall, by the said name, sue or be sued(3) the head office of the commission shall be at delhi15composition of commission4 (1) the commission shall consist of the following persons to be appointed by the central government, namely:—(a) a chairperson;(b) twelve ex officio members; (c) eleven part-time members; and20(d) an ex officio member secretary25(2) the chairperson shall be a person of outstanding ability, proven administrative capacity and integrity, possessing a post graduate degree in any discipline of medical sciences from any university and having experience of not less than twenty years in the field of medical sciences, out of which at least ten years shall be as a leader in the area of  healthcare delivery, growth and development of modern medicine or medical education(3) the following persons shall be the ex officio members of the commission, namely:—(a) the president of the under-graduate medical education board;30(b) the president of the post-graduate medical education board; (c) the president of the medical assessment and rating board; (d) the president of the ethics and medical registration  board; (e) the director general of  health services, directorate general of health services,new delhi;(f) the director general, indian council of medical research;35(g) the director, all india institute of medical sciences, delhi or his nominee; (h) the director, post-graduate institute of medical education and research,chandigarh or his nominee;(i) the director, jawaharlal institute of post-graduate medical education andresearch, puducherry or his nominee;40(j) the director, tata memorial hospital, mumbai or his nominee; (k) the director, north eastern indira gandhi regional institute of  health andmedical sciences, shillong or his nominee; and(l) one person to represent the ministry of  the central government dealing with health and family welfare, not below the rank of additional secretary to the government of india, to be nominated by that ministry5(4) the following persons shall be appointed as part-time members of the commission, namely:—(a) three members to be appointed from amongst persons of ability, integrity and standing, who have special knowledge and professional experience in such areas including management, law, medical ethics, health research, consumer or patient rights advocacy, science and technology and economics;10(b) three members to be appointed on rotational basis from amongst the nominees of the states and union territories in the medical advisory council for a term of two years in such manner as may be prescribed;15(c) five members to be elected by the registered medical practitioners from amongst themselves from such regional constituencies, and in such manner, as may be prescribedexplanation—for the purposes of this section and section 17, the term "leader"means the head of a department or the head of an organisation205 (1) the central government shall appoint the chairperson, part-time members referred to in clause (a) of sub-section (4) of section 4 and the secretary referred to in section 8 on the recommendation of a search committee consisting of—search committee for appointment of chairperson and members(a) the cabinet secretary—chairperson; (b) chief  executive officer, national institution for transforming india aayog under the government of india— member;25(c) two experts, possessing outstanding qualifications and experience of not less than twenty-five years in the field of medical sciences or public health, to be nominated by the central government - members;(d) one expert,  from amongst the part-time members referred to in clause (c) of sub-section (4) of section 4, to be nominated by the central government in such manner as may be prescribed - member;30(e) one person, possessing outstanding qualifications and experience of not less than twenty-five years in the field of management or law or economics or science and technology, to be nominated by  the central government - member;(f) the secretary to the government of india in charge of the ministry of health and family welfare, to be the convenor - member35(2) the central government shall, within one month from the date of occurrence of any vacancy, including by reason of death, resignation or removal of the chairperson or a member, or within three months before the end of tenure of the chairperson or member, make a reference to the search committee for filling up of the vacancy40(3) the search committee shall recommend a panel of at least three names for every vacancy referred to it(4) the search committee shall, before recommending any person for appointment as the chairperson or a member of the commission, satisfy itself that such person does not have any financial or other interest which is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as such chairperson or member45(5) no appointment of the chairperson or member shall be invalid merely by reason of any vacancy or absence of a member in the search committee(6) subject to the provisions of sub-sections (2) to (5), the search committee may regulate its own procedure6 (1) the chairperson and the part-time members, other than the part-time members appointed under clause (b) of sub-section (4) of section 4, shall hold office for a term not exceeding four years and shall not be eligible for any extension or reappointment:term of office and conditions of service of chairperson and membersprovided that such person shall cease to hold office after attaining the age of seventy years5(2) the term of office of an ex officio member shall continue as long as he holds the office by virtue of which he is such member10(3) where a member  'other than an ex officio member'  is absent from three consecutive ordinary meetings of the commission and the cause of such absence is not attributable to any valid reason in the opinion of the commission, such member shall be deemed to have vacated the seat (4) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the chairperson and member 'other than an ex officio member' shall be such as may be prescribed15(5) the chairperson or a member may,—(a) relinquish his office by giving in writing to the central government a notice of not less than three months; or(b) be removed from his office in accordance with the provisions of section 7:20 provided that such person may be relieved from duties earlier than three months or be allowed to continue beyond three months until a successor is appointed, if  the central government so decides25(6) the chairperson or a member, ceasing to hold office as such, shall not accept, for a period of one year from the date of demitting such office, any employment, in any capacity, including as a consultant or an expert, in any private medical institution, whose matter has been dealt with by such chairperson or member, directly or indirectly:provided that nothing herein shall be construed as preventing such person from accepting an employment in a body or institution, including medical institution, controlled or maintained by the central government or a state government:30provided further that nothing herein shall prevent the central government from permitting the chairperson or a member to accept any employment in any capacity, including as a consultant or expert in any private medical institution whose matter has been dealt with by such chairperson or member7 (1) the central government may, by order, remove from office the chairperson or any member, who—removal of chairperson and member of commission(a)  has been adjudged an insolvent; or35(b) has been convicted of an offence which, in the opinion of the central government, involves moral turpitude; or(c) has become physically or mentally incapable of acting as a member; or (d) is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court;  or40(e) has acquired such financial or other interest as is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as a member; or(f) has so abused his position as to render his continuance in office prejudicial to public interest45(2) no member shall be removed under clauses (e) and (f) of sub-section (1) unless he has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in the matter8 (1) there shall be a secretariat for the commission to be headed by a secretary, who shall be the ex officio member-secretary to the commission, to be appointed by the central government in accordance with the provisions of section 55(2) the secretary of the commission shall be a person of outstanding ability and integrity possessing a postgraduate qualification and experience in such areas as may be prescribedappointment of secretary, experts, professionals, officers and other employees of commission(3) the secretary shall be appointed by the central government for a term of four years and shall not be eligible for any extension or reappointment10(4) the secretary shall discharge such functions of the commission as are assigned to him by the commission and as may be specified by regulations made under this act(5) the commission may, for the efficient discharge of its functions under this act, appoint such officers and other employees, as it considers necessary, against the posts created by the central government15(6) the salaries and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the secretary, officers and other employees of the commission shall be such as may be prescribed20(7) the commission may engage, in accordance with the procedure specified by regulations, such number of experts and professionals of integrity and outstanding ability, who have special knowledge of, and experience in such fields, including medical education, public health, management, health economics, quality assurance, patient advocacy, health research, science and technology, administration, finance, accounts and law, as it deems necessary, to assist the commission in the discharge of its functions under this actmeetings, etc, of commission9 (1) the commission shall meet at least once every quarter at such time and place as may be appointed by the chairperson25(2) the chairperson shall preside at the meeting of the commission and if for any reason the chairperson is unable to attend a meeting of the commission, any other member, being the president of an autonomous board, nominated by the chairperson, shall preside at the meeting30(3) unless the procedure to be followed at the meetings of the commission is otherwise provided by regulations, one-half of the total number of members of the commission including the chairperson shall constitute the quorum and all the acts of the commission shall be decided by a majority of the members, present and voting and in the event of equality of votes, the chairperson, or in his absence, the president of the autonomous board nominated under sub-section (2), shall have the casting vote35(4) the general superintendence, direction and control of the administration of the commission shall vest in the chairperson(5) no act done by the commission shall be questioned on the ground of the existence of a vacancy in, or a defect in the constitution of, the commission40(6) a person who is aggrieved by any decision of the commission may prefer an appeal to the central government against such decision within thirty days of the communication of such decision10 (1) the commission shall perform the following functions, namely:—powers and functions of commission(a) lay down policies for maintaining a high quality and high standards in medicaleducation and make necessary regulations in this behalf;45(b) lay down policies for regulating medical institutions, medical researches andmedical professionals and make necessary regulations in this behalf;(c) assess the requirements in healthcare, including human resources for healthand healthcare infrastructure and develop a road map for  meeting such requirements;(d) promote, coordinate and frame guidelines and lay down policies by making necessary regulations for the proper functioning of the commission, the autonomous boards and the state medical councils;5(e) ensure coordination among the autonomous boards; (f) take such measures, as may be necessary, to ensure compliance by the statemedical councils of the guidelines framed and regulations made under this act for their effective functioning under this act;(g) exercise appellate jurisdiction with respect to the decisions of the  autonomousboards, except that of the ethics and medical registration board;10(h) lay down policies and codes to ensure observance of professional ethics inmedical profession and to promote ethical conduct during the provision of care by medical practitioners;(i) frame guidelines for determination of fees in respect of such proportion ofseats, not exceeding forty per cent, in the private medical institutions and deemed universities which are governed by the provisions of this act;15(j) exercise such other powers and perform such other functions as may beprescribed20(2) all orders and decisions of the commission shall be authenticated by the signature of the secretary(3) the commission may delegate such of its powers of administrative and financial matters, as it deems fit, to the secretary(4) the commission may constitute sub-committees and delegate such of its powers to such sub-committees as may be necessary to enable them to accomplish specific tasks chapter iii the medical advisory council2511 (1) the central government shall constitute an advisory body to be known as the medical advisory council(2) the council shall consist of a chairperson and the following members, namely :—constitution and composition of medical advisory council(a) the chairperson of the commission shall be the ex officio chairperson of the council;30(b) every member of the commission shall be the ex officio members of the council;(c) one member to represent each state, who is the vice-chancellor of a healthuniversity in that state, to be nominated by that state government;35(d) one member to represent each union territory, who is the vice-chancellor ofa health university in that union territory, to be nominated by the ministry of home affairs in the government of india;(e) the chairman, university grants commission; (f) the director, national assessment and accreditation council;40(g) four members to be nominated by the central government from amongstpersons holding the post of director in the indian institutes of technology, indian institutes of management and the indian institute of science:45provided that if there is no health university in any state or union territory,  thevice-chancellor of a university within that state or union territory having the largest number of medical colleges affiliated to it shall be nominated by the state government or by the ministry of home affairs in the government of india:provided further that if there is no university in any union territory, the ministry of home affairs shall nominate a member who possesses such medical qualification and experience as may be prescribed12 (1)  the council shall be the primary platform through which the states and unionterritories may put forth their views and concerns before the commission and help in shaping the overall agenda, policy and action relating to medical education and trainingfunctions of medical advisory council5(2) the council shall advise the commission on measures to determine and maintain,and to coordinate maintenance of, the minimum standards in all matters relating to medical education, training and research(3) the council shall advise the commission on measures to enhance equitable accessto medical education1013 (1) the council shall meet at least once a year at such time and place as may bedecided by the chairpersonmeetings of medical advisory council(2) the chairperson shall preside at the meeting of the council and if for any reasonthe chairperson is unable to attend a meeting of the council, such other member as nominated by the chairperson shall preside over the meeting15(3) unless the procedure is otherwise provided by regulations, fifteen membersincluding the chairperson of the council shall form the quorum and all acts of the council shall be decided by a majority of the members present and voting chapter iv national eligibility-cum-entrance test and examination2014 (1) there shall be a uniform national eligibility-cum-entrance test for admission tothe undergraduate medical education in all medical institutions which are governed by the provisions of this actnational eligibilitycum-entrance test(2) the commission shall conduct the national eligibility-cum-entrance test in englishand in such other languages, through such designated authority and in such manner, as may be specified by regulations25(3) the commission shall specify by regulations the manner of conducting commoncounselling by the designated authority for admission in all the medical institutions which are governed by the provisions of this act:30provided that the designated authority of the central government  shall conduct thecommon counselling for all-india seats and the designated authority of the state government shall conduct the common counselling for the seats at the state levelnational licentiate examination15 (1) the commission shall conduct a uniform national licentiate examination forstudents graduating from the medical institutions which are governed by the provisions of this act for granting licence to practice medicine as medical practitioners and for enrolment in the state register or the national register, as the case may be35(2) the commission shall conduct the national licentiate examination through suchdesignated authority and in such manner as may be specified by regulations(3) the national licentiate examination shall become operational on such date, within three years from the date of commencement of this act, as may be appointed by the central government, by notification40(4) the national licentiate examination shall be the basis for admission to postgraduate courses in medical institutions which are governed by the provisions of this act(5) the commission shall specify by regulations the manner of conducting common counselling by the designated authority for admission to the postgraduate courses in the medical institutions governed under this act:45provided that the designated authority of the central government shall conduct the common counselling for all india seats and by the designated authority of the state government shall conduct the common counselling for the seats at the state level chapter v autonomous boardsconstitution of autonomous boards516 (1) the central government shall, by notification, constitute the following autonomous boards, under the overall supervision of the commission, to perform the functions assigned to such boards under this act, namely:—(a) the under-graduate medical education board (under-graduate medicaleducation board);(b) the post-graduate medical education board (post-graduate medicaleducation board);10(c) the medical assessment and rating board (medical assessment and ratingboard); and(d) the ethics and medical registration board (ethics and medical registrationboard)15(2) each board referred to in sub-section (1) shall be an autonomous body which shall carry out its functions under this act subject to the regulations made by the commissioncomposition of autonomous boards20253017 (1) each autonomous board shall consist of a president and two members(2) the president of the each autonomous board, both members of the under-graduate medical education board and the post-graduate medical education board and one member each of the medical assessment and rating board and the ethics and medical registration board shall be persons of outstanding ability, proven administrative capacity and integrity, possessing a postgraduate degree in any discipline of medical sciences from any university and having experience of not less than fifteen years in such field, out of which at least seven years shall be as a leader in the area of medical education, public health, community medicine or health research(3) the second member of the medical assessment and rating board shall be a person of outstanding ability and integrity, possessing a postgraduate degree in any of the disciplines of management, quality assurance, law or science and technology from any university, having not less than fifteen years' experience in such field, out of which at least seven years shall be as a leader(4) the second member of the ethics and medical registration board shall be a person of outstanding ability who has demonstrated public record of work on medical ethics or a person of outstanding ability possessing a postgraduate degree in any of the disciplines of quality assurance, public health, law or patient advocacy from any university and having not less than fifteen years' experience in such field, out of which at least seven years shall be as a leader3518 the  central government shall appoint the president and members of the autonomous boards on the  recommendations made by the search committee constituted under section 5 in accordance with the procedure specified in that section4019 (1) the president and members of each autonomous board shall hold the office for a term not exceeding four years and shall not be eligible for any extension or reappointment:search committee for appointment of president and members term of office and conditions of service of president and membersprovided that such person shall cease to hold office after attaining the age of seventy years45(2) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the president and members of an autonomous board shall be such as may be prescribed(3) the provisions of sub-sections (3), (5) and (6) of section 6 relating to other terms and conditions of service of, and in section 7 relating to removal from the office of, the chairperson and members of the commission shall also apply to the president and members of the autonomous boardsadvisory committees of experts20 (1) each autonomous board, except the ethics and medical registration  board,shall be assisted by such advisory committees of experts as may be constituted by the commission for the efficient discharge of the functions of such boards under this act5(2) the ethics and medical registration board shall be assisted by such ethicscommittees of experts as may be constituted by the commission for the efficient discharge of the functions of that board under this actstaff of autonomous boards21 the experts, professionals, officers and other employees appointed under section 8shall be made available to the autonomous boards in such number, and in such manner, as may be specified by regulations by the commission1022 (1) every autonomous board shall meet at least once a month at such time andplace as it may appointmeetings, etc, of autonomousboards(2) all decisions of the autonomous boards shall be made by majority of votes of thepresident and members15(3) a person who is aggrieved by any decision of an autonomous board may prefer anappeal to the commission against such decision within sixty days of the communication of such decision23 (1) the president of each autonomous board shall have such  administrative andfinancial powers as may be delegated to it by the commission to enable such board to function efficientlypowers  of autonomous boards and delegation of powers20(2) the president of an autonomous board may further delegate any of his powers toa member or an officer of that board24 (1) the under-graduate medical education board shall perform the followingfunctions, namely:—25(a) determine standards of medical education at undergraduate level and overseeall aspects relating thereto;functions of under- graduate medical education board(b) develop competency based dynamic curriculum at undergraduate level inaccordance with provisions of the regulations  made under this act;30(c) develop competency based dynamic curriculum for primary medicine,community medicine and family medicine to ensure healthcare in such areas, inaccordance with provisions of  the regulations made under this act;(d) frame guidelines for setting up of medical institutions for impartingundergraduate courses, having regard to the needs of the country and the global norms, in accordance with provisions of  the regulations made under this act;35(e) determine the minimum requirements and standards for conducting coursesand examinations for undergraduates in medical institutions,  having regard to the needs of creativity at local levels, including designing of some courses by individual institutions, in accordance with provisions of  the regulations made under this act;(f) determine standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education in medical institutions providing undergraduate medical education in accordance with provisions of  the regulations made under this act;40(g) facilitate development and training of faculty members teachingundergraduate courses;(h) facilitate research and the international student and faculty exchange programmes relating to undergraduate medical education;45(i) specify norms for compulsory annual disclosures,  electronically or otherwise, by medical institutions, in respect of their functions that has a bearing on the interest of all stakeholders including students, faculty, the commission and the central government;(j) grant recognition to a medical qualification at the undergraduate level(2) the under-graduate medical education board may, in the discharge of its duties, make such recommendations to, and seek such directions from, the commission, as it deems necessary5functions of post-graduate medical education board101520253025 (1) the post-graduate medical education board shall perform the following functions, namely:—(a) determine the standards of medical education at the postgraduate level and super-speciality level in accordance with the regulations  made under this act and oversee all aspects relating thereto;(b) develop competency based dynamic curriculum at postgraduate level and super-speciality level in accordance with the regulations made under this act, with a view to develop appropriate skill, knowledge, attitude, values and ethics among postgraduates and super-specialists to provide healthcare, impart medical education and conduct medical research;(c) frame guidelines for setting up of medical institutions for imparting postgraduate and super-speciality courses, having regard to the needs of the country and global norms, in accordance with the regulations  made under this act;(d) determine the minimum requirements and standards for conducting postgraduate and super-specialty courses and examinations in medical institution, in accordance with the regulations made under this act;(e) determine standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education in medical institutions conducting postgraduate and super-speciality medical education, in accordance with the regulations made under this act;(f) facilitate development and training of the faculty members teaching postgraduate and super-speciality courses;(g) facilitate research and the international student and faculty exchange programmes relating to postgraduate and super-speciality medical education;(h) specify norms for compulsory annual disclosure, electronically or otherwise, by medical institutions in respect of their functions that has a bearing on the interest of all stakeholders including students, faculty, the commission and the central government;(i) grant recognition to the medical qualifications at the postgraduate level and super-speciality level (2) the post-graduate medical education board may, in the discharge of its functions, make such recommendations to, and seek such directions from, the commission, as it deems necessary35functions of medical assessment and rating board404526 (1) the medical assessment and rating board shall perform the following functions, namely:—(a) determine the procedure for assessing and rating the medical institutions for their compliance with the standards laid down by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, in accordance with the regulations made under this act;(b) grant permission for establishment of a new medical institution in accordance with the provisions of section 28;(c) carry out inspections of medical institutions for assessing and rating such institutions in accordance with the regulations made under this act: provided that the medical assessment and rating board may, if it deems necessary, hire and authorise any other third party agency or persons for carrying out inspections of medical institutions for assessing and rating such institutions:provided further that where inspection of medical institutions is carried out by such third party agency or persons authorised by the medical assessment and rating board, it shall be obligatory on such institutions to provide access to such agency or person;50510152025(d) conduct, or where it deems necessary, empanel independent rating agencies to conduct, assess and rate all medical institutions, within such period of their opening, and every year thereafter, at such time, and in such manner, as may be specified by regulations;(e)  make available on its website or in public domain the assessment and ratings of medical institutions at regular intervals in accordance with the regulations made under this act;(f) take such measure, including  imposition of monetary penalty, against a medical institution for failure to maintain the minimum essential standards specified by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, in accordance with the regulations  made under this act: provided that the medical institution which has been imposed a first-time monetary penalty fails to take any corrective action, the medical assessment and rating board may impose a second-time monetary penalty for continued failure which shall be higher than the first-time penalty and on continued failure, impose a third-time monetary penalty which shall be higher than the second-time penalty:provided further that all the three monetary penalties imposed under the first proviso shall not be less than one-half, and not more than ten-times, the total amount charged, by whatever name called, by such institution for one full batch of students of undergraduate course or postgraduate course, as the case may be:provided also that evenafter the imposition of third-time penalty, if the failure continues, the medical assessment and rating board shall forward its report to the commission recommending to withdraw the recognition granted to the medical qualification awarded by that medical institution(2) the medical assessment and rating board may, in the discharge of its functions, make such recommendations to, and seek such directions from, the commission, as it deems necessary30powers and functions of ethics and medical registration board354027 (1) the ethics and medical registration board shall perform the following functions, namely:—(a) maintain a national register of all licensed medical practitioners in accordance with the provisions of section 31;(b) regulate professional conduct and promote medical ethics in accordance with the regulations made under this act: provided that the ethics and medical registration board shall ensure compliance of the code of professional and ethical conduct through the state medical council in a case where such state medical council has been conferred power to take disciplinary actions in respect of professional or ethical misconduct by medical practitioners under respective state acts;(c) develop mechanisms to have continuous interaction with state medical councils to effectively promote and regulate the conduct of medical practitioners and professionals;(d) exercise appellate jurisdiction with respect to the actions taken by a state medical council under section 30 (2) the ethics and medical registration board may, in the discharge of its duties, make such recommendations to, and seek such directions from, the commission, as it deems necessary455permission for establishment of new medical college5028 (1) no person shall establish a new medical college without obtaining prior permission of the medical assessment and rating board(2) for the purposes of obtaining permission under sub-section (1), a person may submit a scheme to the medical assessment and rating board in such form, containing such particulars, accompanied by such fee, and in such manner, as may be specified by regulations(3) the medical assessment and rating board shall, having due regard to the criteria specified in section 29, consider the scheme received under sub-section (2) and  either approve or disapprove such scheme within a period of six months from the date of such receipt:provided that before disapproving such scheme, an opportunity to rectify the defects, if any, shall be given to the person concerned(4) where a scheme is approved under sub-section (3), such approval shall be the permission under sub-section (1) to establish new medical college510(5) where a scheme is disapproved under sub-section (3), or where no decision istaken within six months of submitting a scheme under sub-section (1), the person concernedmay prefer an appeal to the commission for approval of the scheme within fifteen days of such disapproval or, as the case may be, lapse of six months, in such manner as may be specified by regulations(6)  the commission shall decide the appeal received under sub-section (5) within aperiod of forty-five days from the date of receipt of the appeal and in case the commission approves the scheme, such approval shall be the permission under sub-section (1) to establish a new medical college and in case the commission disapproves the scheme, or fails to give its decision within the specified period, the person concerned may prefer a second  appeal to the central government within thirty days of communication of such disapproval or, as the case may be, lapse of specified period1520(7) the medical assessment and rating board may conduct evaluation and assessmentof any university or medical institution at any time, either directly or through any other expert and without any prior notice and assess and evaluate the performance, standards and benchmarks of such university or medical institutionexplanation—for the purposes of this section, the term "person" includes a university,trust or any other association of persons or body of individuals, but does not include the central government29 while approving or disapproving a scheme under section 28, the medical assessment and rating board, or the commission, as the case may be, shall take into consideration the following criteria, namely:—criteria for approving or disapproving scheme(a) adequacy of financial resources;25(b) whether adequate academic faculty and other necessary facilities  have beenprovided to ensure proper functioning of medical college or would be provided within the time-limit specified in the scheme;30(c) whether adequate hospital facilities have been provided or would be providedwithin the time-limit specified in the scheme;(d) such other factors as may be prescribed:provided that, subject to the previous approval of the central government, the criteria may be relaxed for the medical colleges which are set-up in such areas as may be specified by regulations35state medical councils30 (1) the state government shall, within three years of the commencement of thisact, take necessary steps to establish a state medical council  if no such council exists in that state40(2) where a state act confers power upon the state medical council to take disciplinary actions in respect of any professional or ethical misconduct by a registered medical practitioner or professional, the state medical council shall act in accordance with the regulations made, and the guidelines framed, under this act:45provided that till such time as a state medical council is established in a state, the ethics and medical registration board shall receive the complaints and grievances relating to any professional or ethical misconduct against a registered medical practitioner or professional in that state in accordance with such procedure as may be specified by regulations:provided further that the ethics and medical registration board or, as the case may be, the state medical council shall give an opportunity of hearing to the medical practitioner or professional  concerned before taking any action, including imposition of any monetary penalty against such person5051015(3) a medical practitioner or professional who is aggrieved by any action taken by a state medical council under sub-section (2) may prefer an appeal to the ethics and medical registration board against such action, and the decision, if any, of the ethics and medical registration board thereupon shall be binding on the state medical council, unless an appeal is preferred under sub-section (4)(4) a medical practitioner or professional who is aggrieved by the decision of the ethics and medical registration board may prefer an appeal to the commission within sixty days of communication of such decision(5) a medical practitioner or professional who is aggrieved by the decision of the commission may perfer an appeal to the central government within thirty days of communication of such decisionexplanation—for the purposes of this act,—(a) "state" includes union territory and the expressions "state government"and "state medical council", in relation to a union territory, shall respectively mean the "central government" and "union territory medical council";(b) the expression "professional or ethical misconduct" includes any act of commission or omission as may be specified by regulationsnational register and state register20251 of 187230354048 of 197031 (1) the ethics and medical registration board shall maintain a national register containing the name, address, all recognised qualifications possessed by a licensed medical practitioner and such other particulars as may be specified by regulations(2) the national register shall be maintained in such form, including electronic form, in such manner, as may be specified by regulations(3) the manner in which a name or qualification may be added to, or removed from, the national register and the grounds for removal thereof, shall be such as may be specified by regulations(4) the national register shall be a public document within the meaning of section 74of the indian evidence act, 1872(5) the national register shall be made available to the public by placing it on the website of the ethics and medical registration board(6) every state medical council shall maintain and regularly update the state register in the specified electronic format and supply a physical copy of the same to the ethics and medical registration board within three months of the commencement of this act(7) the ethics and medical registration board shall ensure electronic synchronisation of the national register and the state register in such a manner that any change in one register is automatically reflected in the other register(8)  the ethics and medical registration board shall maintain a separate national register in such form, containing such particulars, including the name, address and all recognised qualifications possessed by a licensed ayush practitioner who qualifies the bridge course referred to in sub-section (4) of section 49, in such manner as may be specified by regulationsexplanation—for the purposes of this section, the expression "ayush practitioner"means a person who is a practitioner of homoeopathy or a practitioner of indian medicine as defined in clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the indian medicine central council act, 197045102 of 19565032 (1) any person who qualifies the national licentiate examination held under section 15shall be granted a licence to practice medicine and shall have his name and qualifications enrolled in the national register or a state register, as the case may be:provided that a person who has been registered in the indian medical register maintained under the indian medical council act, 1956 prior to the coming into force of this act and before the national licentiate examination becomes operational under sub-section (3)of section 15, shall be deemed to have been registered under this act and be enrolled in the national register maintained under this actrights of persons to have licence to practice and to be enrolled in national register or state register and their obligations thereto(2) no person who has obtained medical qualification from a medical institution established in any country outside india and is recognised as a medical practitioner in that country, shall, after the commencement of this act and the national licentiate examination becomes operational under sub-section (3) of section 15, be enrolled in the national register unless he qualifies the national licentiate examination510(3) when a person whose name is entered in the state register or the national register, as the case may be, obtains any title, diploma or other qualification for proficiency in sciences or public health or medicine which is a recognised medical qualification under section 34 or section 35, as the case may be, he shall be entitled to have such title, diploma or qualification entered against his name in the state register or the national register, as the case may be, in such manner as may be specified by regulationsbar to practice33 (1) no person other than a person who is enrolled in the state register or the national register, as the case may be, shall—(a) be allowed to practice medicine as a qualified medical practitioner;15(b) hold office as a physician or surgeon or any other office, by whatever name called, which is meant to be held by a physician or surgeon;(c) be entitled to sign or authenticate a medical or fitness certificate or any other certificate required by any law to be signed or authenticated by a duly qualified medical practitioner;201 of 1872(d) be entitled to give evidence at any inquest or in any court of law as an expert under section 45 of the indian evidence act, 1872 on any matter relating to medicine: provided that the commission may permit a medical professional to perform surgery or practice medicine without qualifying the national licentiate examination, in such circumstances and for such period as may be specified by regulations:25provided further that the commission shall submit a list of such medical professionals to the central government in such manner as may be prescribed:30provided also that a foreign citizen who is enrolled in his country as a medical practitioner in accordance with the law regulating the registration of medical practitioners in that country may be permitted temporary registration in india for such period and in such manner as may be specified by regulations(2) any person who contravenes any of the provisions of this section shall be punished with fine which shall not be less than one lakh rupees, but which may extend to five lakh rupees35 chapter vi recognition of medical qualifications4034 (1) the medical qualification granted by any university or medical institution in india shall be listed and maintained by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, in such manner as may be specified by regulations and such medical qualification shall be a recognised medical qualification for the purposes of this actrecognition of medical qualifications granted by universities or medical institutions in india(2) any university or medical institution in india which grants an undergraduate or postgraduate or super-speciality medical qualification not included in the list maintained by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, may apply to that board for granting recognition to such qualification45(3) the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, shall examine the application for grant of recognition to a medical qualification within a period of six months in such manner as may be specified by regulations5101520102 of 195625recognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside india303540102 of 195645recognition of medical qualifications granted by statutory or other body in india5055(4) where the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, decides to grant recognition to a medical qualification, it shall include such medical qualification in the list maintained by it and also specify the date of effect of such recognition(5) where the under-graduate medical education board or post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, decides not to grant recognition to a medical qualification, the university or the medical institution concerned may prefer an appeal to the commission for grant of recognition within sixty days of the communication of such decision, in such manner as may be specified by regulations(6) the commission shall examine the appeal received under sub-section (5) within a period of two months and if it decides that recognition may be granted to such medical qualification, it may direct the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, to include such medical qualification in the list maintained by that board, in such manner as may be specified by regulations(7) where the commission decides not to grant recognition to the medical qualification, or fails to take a decision within the specified period, the university or the medical institution concerned may prefer a second appeal to the central government within thirty days of the communication of such decision or lapse of specified period, as the case may be(8) all medical qualifications which have been recognised before the date of commencement of this act and are included in the first schedule and part i of the third schedule to the indian medical council act, 1956, shall also be recognised medical qualifications for the purposes of this act, and shall be listed and maintained by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, in such manner as may be specified by regulations35 (1) where an authority in any country outside india, which by the law of that country is entrusted with the recognition of medical qualifications in that country, makes an application to the commission for granting recognition to such medical qualification in india, the commission may, subject to such verification as it may deem necessary, either grant or refuse to grant recognition to that medical qualification:provided that the commission shall give a reasonable opportunity of being heard to such authority before refusing to grant such recognition(2) a medical qualification which is granted recognition by the commission under sub-section (1) shall be a recognised medical qualification for the purposes of this act, and such qualification shall be listed and maintained by the commission in such manner as may be specified by regulations(3) where the commission refuses to grant recognition to the medical qualification under sub-section (1), the authority concerned may prefer an appeal to the central government against such decision within thirty days of communication thereof(4) all medical qualifications which have been recognised before the date of commencement of this act and are included in the second schedule and part ii of the third schedule to the indian medical council act, 1956, shall also be recognised medical qualifications for the purposes of this act, and shall be listed and maintained by the commission in such manner as may be specified by regulations36 (1) the medical qualifications granted by any statutory or other body in india which are covered by the categories listed in the schedule shall be recognised medical qualifications for the purposes of this act(2) the diplomate of national board granted by the national board of examination in broad speciality course and super-speciality course shall be equal in all respects to the postgraduate qualification and the super-speciality qualification, respectively, granted under this act(3) the central government may, on the recommendation of the commission, and having regard to the objects of this act, by notification, add to, or, as the case may be, omit from, the schedule any categories of medical qualifications granted by a statutory or other body in india and on such addition, or as the case may be, omission, the medical qualifications granted by such statutory or other body in india shall be, or shall cease to be, recognised medical qualifications for the purposes of this act37 (1) where, upon receiving a report from the medical assessment and rating board under section 26, or otherwise, if the commission is of the opinion that—5withdrawal of recognition granted to medical qualification granted by medical institutions in india(a) the courses of study and examination to be undergone in, or the proficiencyrequired from candidates at any examination held by, a university or medical institution do not conform to the standards specified by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be; or(b) the standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of educationin medical institution as determined by the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, are not adhered to by any university or medical institution,1015and such university or medical institution has failed to take necessary corrective action to maintain specified minimum standards, the commission may initiate action in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2):provided that the commission shall, before taking any action for suo motu withdrawal of recognition granted to the medical qualification awarded by a university or medical institution, impose monetary penalty in accordance with the provisions of clause (f ) of sub-section (1) of section 262025(2) the commission shall, after making such further inquiry as it deems fit, and after holding consultations with the  concerned state government and the authority of the concerned university or medical institution, comes to the conclusion that the recognition granted to a medical qualification ought to be withdrawn,  it may, by order, withdraw recognition granted to such medical qualification and direct the under-graduate medical education board or the post-graduate medical education board, as the case may be, to amend the entries against the university or medical institution concerned in the list maintained by that board to the effect that the recognition granted to such medical qualification is withdrawn with effect from the date specified in that order3038 where, after verification with the authority in any country outside india, the commission is of the opinion that a recognised medical qualification which is included in the list maintained by it is to be derecognised, it may, by order, derecognise such medical qualification and remove it from the list maintained by the commission with effect from the date of such orderderecognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside india3539 where the commission deems it necessary, it may, by an order published in the official gazette, direct that any medical qualification granted  by a medical institution in a country outside india, after such date as may be specified in that notification, shall be a recognised medical qualification for the purposes of this act:special provision in certain cases for recognition of medical qualificationsprovided that medical practice by a person possessing such qualification shall be permitted only if such person has been enrolled as a medical practitioner in accordance with the law regulating the registration of medical practitioner for the time being in force in that country:provided further that medical practice by a person possessing such qualification shall be limited to such period as may be specified in that order40 chapter vii grants, audit and accountsgrants by central government40 the central government may, after due appropriation made by parliament by law in this behalf, make to the commission grants of such sums of money as the central government may think fit4541 (1) there shall be constituted a fund to be called "the national medical commissionfund" which shall form part of the public account of india and there shall be credited thereto—national medical commission fund(a) all government grants, fees, penalties and charges received by the commissionand the autonomous boards;(b) all sums received by the commission from such other sources as may be decided by it (2) the fund shall be applied for making payment towards—5(a) the salaries and allowances payable to the chairperson and members of the commission, the presidents and members of the autonomous boards and the administrative expenses including the salaries and allowances payable to the officers and other employees of the commission and autonomous boards;10(b) the expenses incurred in carrying out  the provisions of this act, including in connection with the discharge of the functions of the commission and the autonomous boardsaudit andaccounts42 (1) the commission shall maintain proper accounts and other relevant records andprepare an annual statement of accounts in such form as may be prescribed, in consultation with the comptroller and auditor-general of india15(2) the accounts of the commission shall be audited by the comptroller and auditor-general of india at such intervals as may be specified by him and any expenditure incurred in connection with such audit shall be payable by the commission to the comptroller and auditor-general of india20(3) the comptroller and auditor-general of india and any other persons appointed by him in connection with the audit of the accounts of the commission shall have the same rights and privileges and authority in connection with such audit as the comptroller and auditor-general generally has in connection with the audit of government accounts and in particular, shall have the right to demand the production of, and complete access to, records, books, accounts, connected vouchers and other documents and papers and to inspect the office of the commission25(4) the accounts of the commission as certified by the comptroller and auditor-general of india or any other person appointed by him in this behalf, together with the audit report thereon, shall be forwarded annually by the commission to the central government which shall cause the same to be laid, as soon as may be after it is received, before each house of parliament3043 (1)  the commission shall furnish to the central government, at such time, in such form and  in such manner, as may be prescribed or as the central government may direct, such reports and statements, containing such particulars in regard to any matter under the jurisdiction of the commission, as the central government may, from time to time, requirefurnishing of returns and reports to central government35(2) the commission shall prepare, once every year, in such form and at such time as may be prescribed, an annual report, giving a summary of its activities during the previous year and copies of the report shall be forwarded to the central government(3) a copy of the report received under sub-section (2) shall be laid by the central government, as soon as may be after it is received, before each house of parliament chapter  viii miscellaneous4044 (1) without prejudice to the foregoing provisions of this act, the commission and the autonomous boards shall, in exercise of their powers and discharge of their functions under this act, be bound by such directions on questions of policy as the central government may give in writing to them from time to time:45power of central government to give directions to commission and autonomous boardsprovided that the commission and the autonomous boards shall, as far as practicable, be given an opportunity to express their views before any direction is given under this sub-section(2) the decision of the central government whether a question is one of policy or not shall be final545 the central government may give such directions, as it may deem necessary, to a state government for carrying out all or any of the provisions of this act and the state government shall comply with such directionspower of central government to give directions to state governments46 (1) the commission shall furnish such reports, copies of its minutes, abstracts of its accounts, and other information to the central government as that government may require10information to be furnished by commission and publicationthereof(2) the central government may publish, in such manner as it may think fit, the reports, minutes, abstracts of accounts and other information furnished to it under sub-section (1)47 every university and medical institution governed under this act shall maintain a website at all times and display on its website all such information as may be required by the commission or an autonomous board, as the case may beobligation of universities and medical institutions15completion of courses of studies in medical institutions2048 (1) notwithstanding anything contained in this act, any student who wasstudying for a degree, diploma or certificate in any medical institution immediately before the commencement of this act shall continue to so study and complete his course for suchdegree, diploma or certificate, and such institution shall continue to provide instructions and examination for such student in accordance with the syllabus and studies as existed before such commencement, and such student shall be deemed to have completed his course of study  under this act and shall be awarded degree, diploma or certificate under this act25(2) notwithstanding anything contained in this act, where recognition granted to amedical institution has lapsed, whether by efflux of time or by its voluntary surrender or for any other reason whatsoever, such medical institution shall continue to maintain and provide the minimum standards required to be provided under this act till such time as all candidates who are admitted in that medical institution complete their study3049 (1) there shall be a joint sitting of the commission, the central council of homoeopathy and the central council of indian medicine at least once a year, at such time and place as they mutually appoint, to enhance the interface between homoeopathy, indian systems of medicine and modern systems of medicine(2) the agenda for the joint sitting may be prepared with mutual agreement between the chairpersons of the commission,  the central council of homoeopathy and the central council of indian medicine or be  prepared separately by each of them35joint sittings of commission, central councils of homoeopathy and indian medicine to enhance interface between their respective systems of medicine(3) the joint sitting referred to in sub-section (1) may, by an affirmative vote of allmembers present and voting, decide on approving specific educational modules or programmes that may be introduced in the undergraduate course and the postgraduate course across medical systems and to develop bridges across the various systems of medicine and promote medical pluralism40(4) the joint sitting referred to in sub-section (1) may, by an affirmative vote of allmembers present and voting, decide on approving specific bridge course that may be introduced for the practitioners of homoeopathy and of indian systems of medicine to enable them to prescribe such modern medicines at such level as may be prescribed4550 the chairperson, members, officers and other employees of the commission andthe president, members and officers and other employees of the autonomous boards shall be deemed, when acting or purporting to act in pursuance of any of the provisions of this act, to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the indian penal codechairperson, members, officers of commission and of autonomous boards to be public servantsprotection of action taken in good faith551 no suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against the government, thecommission or any autonomous board or a state medical council or any committee thereof, or any officer or other employee of the government or of the commission acting under this act for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this act or the rules or regulations made thereundercognizance of offences52 no court shall take cognizance of an offence punishable under this act exceptupon a complaint in writing made in this behalf by an officer authorised by the commission or the ethics medical and registration board or a state medical council, as the case may be53 (1) if, at any time, the central government is of opinion that—10(a) the commission is unable to discharge its functions under the provisions ofthis act; orpower of central government to supersedecommission(b) the commission has persistently made default in complying with any directionissued by the central government under this act or in the discharge its functions under the provisions of this act,15the central government may, by notification, supersede the commission for such period, not exceeding six months, as may be specified in the notification:20provided that before issuing a notification under this sub-section, the central government shall give a reasonable opportunity to the commission to show cause as to why it should not be superseded and shall consider the explanations and objections, if any, of the commission(2) upon the publication of a notification under sub-section (1) superseding the commission,—(a) all the members shall, as from the date of supersession, vacate their offices as such;25(b) all the powers and functions which may, by or under the provisions of this act, be exercised or discharged by or on behalf of the commission, shall, until the commission is reconstituted under sub-section (3), be exercised and discharged by such person or persons as the central government may direct;30(c) all property owned or controlled by the commission shall, until the commissionis reconstituted under sub-section (3), vest in the central government(3) on the expiration of the period of supersession specified in the notification issued under sub-section (1), the central government may,—(a) extend the period of supersession for such further term not exceeding sixmonths, as it may consider necessary; or35(b) reconstitute the commission by fresh appointment and in such case the members who vacated their offices under clause (a) of sub-section (2) shall not be deemed disqualified for appointment:40provided that the central government may, at any time before the expiration of the period of supersession, whether as originally specified under sub-section (1) or as extended under this sub-section, take action under clause (b) of this sub-section(4) the central government shall cause a notification issued under sub-section (1)and a full report of any action taken under this section and the circumstances leading to such action to be laid before both houses of parliament at the earliest opportunitypower to make rules4554 (1) the central government may, by notification, make rules to carry out the purposes of this act(2) in particular, and without prejudice to the generality of  the foregoing power, such rules may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—5(a) the manner of appointing three members of the commission on rotationalbasis from amongst the nominees of the states and the union territories in the medical advisory council under clause (b) of sub-section (4) of section 4;(b) the manner of electing five members of the commission by the registeredmedical practitioners from amongst themselves and the regional constituencies from which such members are to be elected under clause (c) of  sub-section (4) of section 4;10(c) the manner of nominating one expert by the central government underclause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 5;(d) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions ofservice of the chairperson and members under sub-section (4) of section 6;(e) the areas in which postgraduate qualification and experience  shall bepossessed by the secretary of the commission under  sub-section (2) of section 8;15(f) the salaries and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions ofservice of the secretary, officers and other employees of the commission  under sub-section (6) of section 8;(g) the other powers and functions of the commission under clause (j) ofsub-section (1) of section 10;20(h) the medical qualification and experience to be possessed by a member underthe second proviso to section 11;25(i) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions ofservice of the president and members of an autonomous board under sub-section (2)of  section 19;(j) the other factors  under clause (d) of section 29;(k) the manner of submitting a list of medical professionals under  the secondproviso to sub-section (1) of section 33;30(l) the form for preparing annual statement of accounts under sub-section (1) ofsection 42;(m) the time within which, and the form and the manner in which, the reports andstatements shall be furnished by the commission and the particulars with regard to any matter as may be required by the central government under sub-section (1) of section 43;35(n) the form and the time for preparing annual report under sub-section (2) ofsection 43;(o) the modern medicines that the practitioners of homoeopathy and of indiansystems of medicine may prescribe and the level at which they may so prescribemodern medicine, under sub-section (4) of section 49;(p) any other matter in respect of which provision is to be made by rules40power to make regulations55 (1) the commission may, after previous publication, by notification, make regulations consistent with this act and the rules made thereunder to carry out the provisions of this act(2) in particular, and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing power, such regulations may provide for all or any of the following matters, namely:—45(a) the functions to be discharged by the secretary of the commission undersub-section (4) of section 8;(b) the procedure  in accordance with which experts and professionals may be engaged and the number of such  experts and professionals under sub-section (7) of section 8;5(c) the procedure to be followed at the meetings of commission, including the quorum at its meetings under sub-section (3) of section 9;(d) the quality and standards to be maintained in medical education under clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 10;(e) the manner of regulating medical institutions, medical researches and medical professionals  under clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 10;10(f) the manner of functioning of the commission, the autonomous boards and the state medical councils under clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 10;(g)  the procedure to be followed at the meetings of the medical advisory council, including the quorum at its meetings under sub-section (3) of section 13;15(h) the other languages in which and the manner in which the national eligibilitycum-entrance test shall be conducted under sub-section (2) of section 14;(i) the manner of conducting common counselling by the designated authority for admission to the undergraduate medical education under sub-section (3) of section 14;20(j) the designated authority, and the manner for  conducting the national licentiate examination, under sub-section (2) of section 15;(k) the manner of conducting common counselling by the designated authority for admission to the postgraduate courses under sub-section (5) of section 15;25(l) the number of, and the manner in which, the experts, professionals, officers and other employees shall be made available by the commission to the autonomous boards under section 21;(m) the curriculum at undergraduate level under clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 24;(n) the curriculum for primary medicine, community  medicine and family medicine under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 24;30(o) the manner of imparting undergraduate courses by medical institutions under clause (d) of sub-section (1) of section 24;(p) the minimum requirements and standards for conducting courses and examinations for undergraduates in medical institutions under clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 24;35(q) the standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education at undergraduate level in medical institutions under clause (f) of sub-section (1) of section 24;(r) the standards of medical education at the postgraduate level and super-speciality level under clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 25;40(s) the curriculum at postgraduate level and super-speciality level underclause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 25;(t) the manner of imparting postgraduate and super-speciality courses by medicalinstitutions under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 25;45(u) the minimum requirements and standards for conducting postgraduate and super-speciality courses and examinations in medical institutions under clause (d)of sub-section (1) of section 25;(v) the standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education in medical institutions conducting postgraduate and super-speciality medical education under clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 25;(w) the procedure for assessing and rating the medical institutions under clause (a) of sub-section (1) of section 26;5(x) the manner of carrying out inspections of medical institutions for assessingand rating such institutions under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 26;10(y) the manner of conducting, and the manner of empanelling independent ratingagencies to conduct, assessment and rating of medical institutions under clause (d) ofsub-section (1) of section 26;(z)  the manner of making available on website or in public domain the assessmentand ratings of  medical institutions under clause (e) of sub-section (1) of section 26;(za) the measures to be taken against a medical institution for failure to maintainthe minimum essential standards under clause (f) of sub-section (1) of section 26;15(zb) the manner of regulating professional conduct and promoting medical ethicsunder clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 27;(zc) the form of scheme, the particulars thereof, the fee to be accompanied andthe manner of submitting scheme for establishing new medical college under sub-section (2) of section 28;20(zd) the manner of making an application to the commission for approval of thescheme under sub-section (5) of section 28;(ze) the areas in respect of which criteria may be relaxed under the proviso tosection 29;25(zf) the manner of taking disciplinary action by a state medical council forprofessional or ethical misconduct of registered medical practitioner or professional and the procedure for receiving complaints and grievances by ethics and medical registration board,  under sub-section (2) of section 30;(zg) the act of commission or omission  which amounts to professional or ethicalmisconduct under clause (b) of the explanation to section 30;30(zh) other particulars to be contained in a national register  under sub-section (1)of section 31;(zi) the form, including the electronic form and the manner of  maintaining thenational register under sub-section (2) of section 31;35(zj)  the manner in which any name or qualification may be added to, or removedfrom, the national register and the grounds for removal thereof, under sub-section (3)of section 31;(zk) the form, the particulars to be contained in and the manner of  maintaining aseparate national register for licensed ayush practitioners who qualify the bridge course, under sub-section (8) of section 31;40(zl) the manner in which the title, diploma or qualification may be entered in thestate register or the national register under sub-section (3) of section 32;(zm) the circumstances in which, and the period for which, the commissionmay permit a medical professional to perform surgery or practice medicine without qualifying the national licentiate examination under the first proviso to sub-section (1) of section 33;45(zn) the manner in which, and the period for which temporary registration  maybe permitted to a foreign citizen  under the third proviso to sub-section (1) of section 33;(zo) the manner of listing and maintaining medical qualifications granted by auniversity or medical institution in india under sub-section (1) of section 34;(zp)  the manner of examining the application for grant of recognition undersub-section (3) of section 34;5(zq)  the manner of preferring an appeal to the commission for grant of recognitionunder  sub-section (5) of section 34;(zr) the manner of including a  medical qualification in the list maintained by theboard  under sub-section (6) of section 34;10(zs) the manner of listing and maintaining medical qualifications  which havebeen granted recognition before the date of commencement of this act under sub-section (8) of section 34rules andregulations to be laid before parliament15 2056 every rule and every regulation made, and every notification issued, under this actshall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each house of parliament, while it is in session, for a total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one session or in two or more successive sessions, and if, before the expiry of the session immediately following the session or the successive sessions aforesaid, both houses agree in making any modification in the rule or regulation or notification both houses agree that the rule or regulation or notification should not be made, the rule or regulation or notification shall thereafter have effect only in such modified form or be of no effect, as the case may be; so, however, that any such modification or annulment shall be without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done under that rule or regulation or notificationpower to remove difficulties2557 (1) if any difficulty arises in giving effect to the provisions of this act,  the centralgovernment may, by order published in the official gazette, make such provisions notinconsistent with the provisions of this act, as may appear to it be necessary, for the removing the difficulty:provided that no order shall be made under this section after the expiry of a period oftwo years from the commencement of this act(2) every order made under this section shall be laid, as soon as may be after it is made, before each house of parliament30repeal and saving102 of 195658 (1) with effect from such date as the central government may appoint in thisbehalf, the indian medical council act, 1956 shall stand repealed and the medical council ofindia constituted under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the said act shall stand dissolved(2) notwithstanding the repeal of the act referred to in sub-section (1), it shall not affect,—35(a) the previous operation of the act so repealed or anything duly done orsuffered thereunder; or(b) any right, privilege, obligation or liability acquired, accrued or incurred underthe act so repealed; or(c) any penalty incurred in respect of any contravention under the act sorepealed; or40(d) any proceeding or remedy in respect of any such right, privilege, obligation,liability, penalty as aforesaid, and any such proceeding or remedy may be instituted, continued or enforced, and any such penalty may be imposed as if that act had not been repealed45(3) on the dissolution of the  medical council of india, the person appointed as the chairman of the  medical council of india and every other person appointed as the member and any officer and other employee of that council and holding office as such immediately before such dissolution shall vacate their respective offices and such chairman and other members shall be entitled to claim compensation not exceeding three months' pay and allowances for the premature termination of term of their office or of any contract of service:provided that any officer or other employee who has been, immediately before the dissolution of the medical council of india appointed on deputation basis to the  medical council of india, shall, on such dissolution, stand reverted to his parent cadre, ministry or department, as the case may be:5provided further that any officer or other employee who has been, immediately beforethe dissolution of the medical council of india, employed on regular or contractual basis by the medical council of india, shall, on and from such dissolution, cease to be the officer or employee of the medical council of india and his employment in the medical council of india stand terminated with immediate effect:10provided also that such officer or employee of the medical council of india shall beentitled to such compensation for the premature termination of his employment, which shall not less than three months' pay and allowances, as may be prescribed15102 of 1956(4) notwithstanding the repeal of the aforesaid enactment, any order made, any licenceto practice issued, any registration made, any permission to start new medical college or to start higher course of studies or for increase in the admission capacity granted, any recognition of medical qualifications granted, under the indian medical council act, 1956, which are in force as on the date of commencement of this act, shall continue to be in force till the date of their expiry for all purposes, as if they had been issued or granted under the provisions of this act or the rules or regulations made thereunder20transitory provisions59 (1) the commission shall be the successor in interest to the  medical council ofindia including its subsidiaries or owned trusts and all the assets and liabilities of the medical council of india shall be deemed to have been transferred to the commission102 of 195625(2) notwithstanding the repeal of the indian medical council act, 1956, the educationalstandards, requirements and other provisions of the indian medical council act, 1956 and the rules and regulations made thereunder shall continue to be in force and operate till new standards or requirements are specified under this act or the rules and regulations made thereunder:30provided that anything done or any action taken as regards the educational standardsand requirements under the enactment under repeal and the rules and regulations made thereunder shall be deemed to have been done or taken under the corresponding provisions of this act and shall continue in force accordingly unless and until superseded by anything done or by any action taken under this act the schedule (see section 36) list of categories of medical qualifications granted by statutory body or other body in india| sl no                                     | categories of medical qualifications                                            ||---------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------|| 1                                          | all medical qualifications granted by the jawaharlal institute of post-graduate || medical education and research, puducherry |                                                                                 |2all medical qualifications granted by all india institutes of medical sciences3all medical qualifications granted by the post-graduate institute of medical education and research, chandigarh4all medical qualifications granted by the national institute of mental health and neuro-sciences, bangalore5all medical qualifications granted by the national board of examination statement of objects and reasonsmedical education is at the core of the access to quality healthcare in any country aflexible and well-functioning legislative framework underlying medical education is essential for the well-being of a nation the indian medical council act, 1956 which was enacted to provide a solid foundation for the growth of medical education in the early decades, has not kept pace with time various bottlenecks have crept into the system with serious detrimental effects on medical education and, by implication, on delivery of quality health services2 the department-related parliamentary standing committee on health and family welfare in its ninety-second report has offered a critical assessment of medical education in india the standing committee has recommended for a decisive and exemplary action to restructure and revamp the regulatory system of medical education and medical practice and to reform the medical council of india in accordance with the regulatory structure suggested by the group of experts, chaired by dr ranjit rai choudhary, which was constituted by the central government the standing committee endorsed separation of functions by forming four autonomous boards and recommended appointment of regulators through selection rather than election and to bring a new comprehensive bill in parliament for this purpose, as the existing provisions of the indian medical council act, 1956 are outdated3 the hon'ble supreme court in its judgment dated 2nd may, 2016 in the civil appeal no 4060 of 2009 titled modern dental college and research centre and others versus state of madhya pradesh and others has directed the central government to consider and take appropriate action on the recommendations of the rai choudhary committee4 accordingly, it is proposed to introduce the national medical commission bill, 2017which, inter alia, seeks to provide for— (a) constitution of a national medical commission for development and regulation of all aspects relating to medical education, medical profession and medical institutions and a medical advisory council to advise and make recommendations to the commission; (b) constitution of four autonomous boards, namely:— (i) the under-graduate medical education board to regulate medical education at undergraduate level and to determine standards thereof; (ii) the post-graduate medical education board to regulate medical education at postgraduate level and to determine standards thereof; (iii) the medical assessment and rating board to carry out inspections and to assess and rate the medical institutions; and (iv) the ethics and medical registration board to regulate professional conduct and promote medical ethics amongst medical practitioners and medical professionals and to maintain a national register of all licensed medical practitioners and a national register of ayush practitioners who have qualified the bridge course; (c) recognition of medical qualifications granted by universities and medical institutions in india and outside india and also for recognition of medical qualifications granted by statutory and other bodies in india as listed in the schedule; (d) holding of a uniform national eligibility-cum-entrance test for admission to undergraduate medical education and the national licentiate examination for admission to postgraduate medical education and for enrolment to the national medical register; (e) holding of joint sitting of the commission, the central council of homoeopathy and the central council of indian medicine to enhance the interface between homoeopathy, indian systems of medicine and modern systems of medicine; (f) the repeal of the indian medical council act, 1956 and for dissolution of the medical council of india by providing that on such dissolution,— (i) the chairman and other members of the said council shall be deemed to have vacated their respective offices and will be entitled to compensation not exceeding three months' pay and allowances; (ii) the officers and employees appointed on deputation shall stand reverted to their parent cadre; (iii) the officers and other employees employed on regular or contractual basis by the said council shall cease to be the officers and employees of said council and shall be entitled to such compensation not less than three months' pay and allowances for the premature termination of employment as may be provided by rules; (g) the manner of seeking permission to establish a new medical college5 the bill seeks to achieve the above objectivesnew delhi;jagat prakash naddathe 22nd december, 2017 ———— president' recommendation under article 117 of the constitution of india ————[copy of letter no h11011/01/2016-mep, dated 22nd december, 2017 from shri jagat prakash nadda, minister of health & family welfare to the secretary general, lok sabha]the president, having been informed of the subject matter of the proposed "national medical commission bill, 2017", recommends to the house the introduction of the bill under article 117(1) of the constitution notes on clausesclause 1 provides for short title, extent and commencement of the proposed actclause 2 defines various terms and expressions used in the proposed act clause 3 provides for constitution of the national medical commission in the proposed actclause 4 provides for composition of the national medical commission and appointment and qualifications of its constituent members the commission shall be a twenty-five member body comprising of chairperson, member-secretary, twelve ex officio members and eleven part-time members of the part-time members, three shall be from non-medical background and five shall be elected members from among registered medical practitionersclause 5 provides for composition of search committee for appointment of the chairperson and members and secretary of the commission under proposed act the committee shall be chaired by cabinet secretary and include three experts nominated by the central government of which two shall be with experience in medical field and one from non-medical one of the elected medical member in national medical commission shall also be a member of this committee chief executive officer, national institution for transforming india and secretary to the government of india in charge of the ministry of health and family welfare are the other membersclause 6 provides duration of office, salary and allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the chairperson and members of the commission they shall hold office for a term not exceeding four years and will not be eligible for extension or reappointmentclause 7 provides for removal of the chairperson and members of the commission clause 8 provides for appointments of secretary, experts, professionals, officers and other employees of the commissionclause 9 provides for meetings, its chairperson, quorum and other ancillary matters connected to meetings the commission shall meet at least once every quarterclause 10 provides for powers and functions of the commission including:— (a) formulation of policies and framing of guidelines for ensuring high quality and standards in medical education and research; (b) coordination of functioning of the commission, autonomous boards andstate medical councils; (c) formulation of policy for regulation of medical profession; (d) power to delegate and form sub-committeesclause 11 provides for constitution and composition of medical advisory council it shall consist of one nominee from every state who shall be the vice-chancellor of state health university or the university with maximum medical colleges under it ministry of home affairs shall nominate one member to represent each union territory every member of national medical commission shall be ex officio members of the advisory councilchairman, university grants commission, director, national assessment and accreditation council, and four members from among directors of indian institutes of technology, indian institutes of management and the indian institute of science shall also be its membersclause 12 provides for functions of medical advisory council to advise the commission on minimum standards in medical education, training and researchclause 13 provides for meetings and quorum of medical advisory councilclause 14 provides for uniform national eligibility-cum-entrance test and counselling for admission in undergraduate course in medical institutionsclause 15 provides that national licentiate examination for students graduating from the medical institutions for granting licence to medical practice, enrolment and admission to postgraduate medical coursesclause 16 provides for constitution of four autonomous boards under the overall supervision of the commission the four autonomous boards are under-graduate medical education board, post-graduate medical education board, medical assessment and rating board and ethics and medical registration boardclause 17 provides for composition of autonomous boards consisting of the president and two members the second member of medical assessment and rating board and ethics and medical registration board shall be from non-medical backgroundclause 18 provides for search committee for appointment of the president and members of the autonomous boardsclause 19 provides for duration of office, salary and allowances and other terms and conditions of service of the president and members of the autonomous boardsclause 20 provides for advisory committees of experts constituted by the commission to render assistance to all autonomous boards for discharging of functions assigned under the actclause 21 provides for staff of autonomous boards clause 22 provides for meetings of autonomous boards every board shall meet at least once a monthclause 23 provides for powers of autonomous boards and delegation of powers clause 24 provides for powers and functions of under-graduate medical education board including determination of standards of medical education at undergraduate level, framing of guidelines for establishment of medical institutions for imparting undergraduate medical courses, granting of recognition to medical institutions at undergraduate levelclause 25 provides for powers and functions of post-graduate medical education board including determination of standards of medical education at postgraduate and super-specialty level, framing of guidelines for establishment of medical institutions for imparting postgraduate and super-specialty medical courses, granting of recognition to medical institutions at postgraduate and super-specialty levelclause 26 provides for powers and functions of medical assessment and rating board including determine the procedure for assessing and rating of medical institutions for compliance with prescribed standards, granting of permission for establishment of new medical institutions and carrying out of inspection for this purpose, imposing of monetary penalty on medical institution for failure to maintain minimum essential standards prescribedclause 27 provides for powers and functions of ethics and medical registration board including maintain a national register for all licensed medical practitioners and regulate professional conduct, to develop mechanism for continuous interaction with state medical councilsclause 28 provides for permission for establishment of new medical college clause 29 provides for criteria for approval or disapproval of the scheme for establishment of new medical collegeclause 30 provides for state medical council and other provisions relating thereto clause 31 provides for the maintenance of a national register by ethics and medical registration board which shall contain the name, address and all recognised qualifications possessed by licensed medical practitioner every state medical council shall maintain a state register the registers will be maintained in such forms including electronic form as may be specified a separate national register shall be maintained for ayush practitioners who qualifies bridge course in modern medicineclause 32 provides for rights of persons to have licence to practice and to be enrolled in national register or state register a person who qualifies national licentiate examination shall be enrolled in the national register or state registerclause 33 provides for bar to practice a person who is not enrolled in the state or national register shall not be allowed to practice medicine or perform any of the function enrolled upon a qualifies medical practitioner such as holding an office of physician or surgeon, signing a medical certificate or giving evidence in matters related to medicine any violation shall be punishable with fine between one to five lakhs the commission may permit exceptions from qualifying national licentiate examination in certain cases foreign medical practitioners shall be permitted temporary registration in india in such manner as may be prescribedclause 34 provides for recognition of medical qualifications granted by universities or medical institutions in india the institutions shall apply under-graduate medical education board or post-graduate medical education board which shall examine the application and decide on grant of recognition first appeal shall lie to the commission and second appeal to the central governmentclause 35 provides for recognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside indiaclause 36 provides for recognition of medical qualifications granted by statutory or other bodies in india which are covered by the categories listed in the scheduleclause 37 provides for withdrawal of recognition granted to medical qualification granted by medical institutions in india the medical assessment and rating board shall make a report to the commission which shall decide the matterclause 38 provides for de-recognition of medical qualifications granted by medical institutions outside indiaclause 39 provides for special provisions in certain cases for recognition of medical qualifications this relates to medical institutions outside indiaclause 40 provides for grants by the central governmentclause 41 provides for national medical commission fund which shall form part of the public account of india all government grants, fee, penalties and all sums received by the commission shall form part of it the fund shall be applied for making payments towards all expenses in the discharge of the functions of the commissionclause 42 provides for audit and accounts the accounts of the commission shall be audited by the comptroller and auditor-general of indiaclause 43 provides for furnishing of returns and reports to the central government clause 44 provides for power of the central government to give directions to commission and autonomous boards on questions of policyclause 45 provides for power of the central government to give directions to state governmentsclause 46 provides for information to be furnished by the commissioner and publication thereofclause 47 provides for obligations of universities and medical institutions they shall maintain a website at all times and display all such information as may be required by the commissionclause 48 provides for completion of courses of studies in medical institutions students who were studying in any medical institution before the commencement of this act shall continue to study and complete in accordance with syllabus and studies as existed before such commencement such student shall be deemed to have completed course of study under this actclause 49 provides for joint sittings of the commission, central councils of homoeopathy and indian medicine to enhance interface between their respective systems of medicine such meeting shall be held at least once a year the joint sitting may reside on approving educational modules to develop bridges across the various systems of medicine and promote medical pluralismclause 50 provides for the chairperson, members, officers of the commission and of autonomous boards to be public servants within the meaning of section 21 of the indian penal codeclause 51 provides for protection of action taken in good faith clause 52 provides for cognizance of offences by courts only upon a complaint in writing by an authorised officer of the committee or ethics and medical registration board or state medical councilclause 53 provides for power of the central government to supersede commission if it is unable to discharge the functions and duties imposed upon it or persistently defaults in complying with any direction issued by the central government the central government may issue notifications of supersession not exceeding 6 months at a timeclause 54 provides for power to make rules the central government may be notification make rules to carry out the purposes of this actclause 55 provides for power to make regulations the commission may after previous publication by notification make regulations consistent with this actclause 56 provides for rules and regulations to be laid before parliament clause 57 provides for power to remove difficulties the central government may be order published in official gazette make such provisions not inconsistent with the provisions of this act for removing the difficultyclause 58 provides for repeal and saving the indian medical council act, 1956 shall stand repealed and the medical council of india shall stand dissolved from the date as may be prescribed by the central government the chairman and other members and employees of medical council of india shall vacate their respective offices and be entitled to the compensationclause 59  provides for transitory provisions evenafter the repeal of the indian medical council act, 1956, the rules and regulations made thereunder shall continue to be in force till new rules and regulations are framed by national medical council financial memorandumsub-clause (1) of clause 3 of the bill provides for constitution of the national medical commission to exercise the powers and to perform the functions assigned to it sub-clause (1) of clause 4 provides for the appointment of chairperson and members of the commission sub-clause (4) of clause 6 provides for payment of salary and allowances to the chairpersons and members, other than ex officio members sub-clause (1) of clause 8provides for appointment of secretary of the commission and sub-clause (5) thereof provides for appointment of officers and other employees of the commission sub-clause (6) of said clause provides for payment of salary and allowances to secretary, officers and other employees of the commission2 sub-clause (1) of clause 16 provides for constitution of four autonomous boards consisting of a president and two members each clause 18 provides for appointment of president and members of the autonomous boards and sub-clause (2) of clause 19 provides for salary and allowances of the president and members of the autonomous boards3 clause 40 provides for payment of grants to the commission, after due appropriation made by parliament by law in this behalf, as the central government may think fit4 sub-clause (1) of clause 41 provides for the constitution of fund to be called the national medical commission fund which shall form part of the public account of india and setting up of the commission would entail some expenditure from the consolidated fund of india all government grants, fees and charges received by the commission and its constituent bodies and all sums received by the commission from such other source as may be decided upon by the central government shall be credited to the fund and shall be applied for payment of salaries and allowances and the expenses incurred in carrying out the provisions of the bill5 sub-clause (3) of clause 58 provides that on the dissolution of the medical council of india, persons appointed as chairman, members, officers and other employees of that council shall vacate their respective offices and that such chairman and members shall, for such premature termination, be entitled to claim compensation not exceeding three months' pay and allowances and the officers and employees who are employed on regular and contractual basis by the medical council of india shall be entitled to such compensation, which shall not be less than three months' pay and allowances, as may be provided by rules6 the expenditure would be largely met from corpus of the existing medical council of india and the funds generated by the national medical commission the budgetary support by the government to the commission and its constituent bodies is estimated not to exceed the level of the current budgetary support given to the council further, as expenditure would depend on the number of meetings of the commission, recurring or non-recurring expenditure cannot be anticipated at this stage memorandum  regarding  delegated  legislationclause 54 of the bill empowers the central government to make rules by notification in the official gazette, inter alia, in respect of  matters relating to—(a) the manner of appointing three members of the commission on rotational basis from amongst the nominees of the states and union territories in the medical advisory council;(b) the manner of electing five members of the commission by the registered medical practitioners from amongst themselves and the regional constituencies from which such members are to be elected;(c) the manner of nominating one expert by the central government; (d) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the chairperson and members;(e) the areas in which post graduate qualification and experience shall be possessed by the secretary of the commission;(f) the salaries and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the secretary, officers and other employees of the commission;(g) the other powers and duties of the commission; (h) the medical qualification and experience to be possessed by a member; (i) the salary and allowances payable to, and other terms and conditions of service of the president and members of an autonomous board; (j) the other factors; (k) the manner of submitting a list of medical; (l) the form for preparing annual statement of accounts; (m) the time within which, and the form and the manner in which, the reports and statements shall be furnished by the commission and the particulars with regard to any matter as may be required by the central government;(n) the form and the time for preparing annual report; (o) the modern medicines that the practitioners of homoeopathy and of indian systems of medicine may prescribe and the level at which they may so prescribe modern medicine;(p) any other matter in respect of which provision is to be made by rules2 sub-clause (3) of clause 15 of the bill empowers the central government to make the national licentiate examination operational from such date, within three years from the date of commencement of this act, as may be appointed by notification3 sub-clause (1) of clause 16 of the bill empowers the central government, by notification, to constitute the autonomous boards under the overall supervision of the commission, to perform the functions assigned to such boards under this act4 sub-clause (3) of clause 36 of the bill empowers the central government, on the recommendations of the commission, and having regard to the objects of this act, by notifcation, to add to, or, as the case may be, omit from, the schedule any categories of medical qualifications granted by a statutory or other body in india5 clause 39 of the bill empowers the commission to issue an order to direct that any medical qualification granted by a medical institution in a country outside india, after such date as may be specified in that notification, shall be a recognised medical qualification for the purposes of this actclause 55 of the bill empowers the commission to make regulations after previous publications and by notification in the official gazette, inter alia, in respect of  matters relating to—(a) the functions to be discharged by the secretary of the commission; (b) the procedure in accordance with which experts and professionals may be engaged and the number of such experts and professionals;(c) the procedure to be followed at the meetings of commission, including the quorum at its meetings;(d) the quality and standards to be maintained in medical education; (e) the manner of regulating medical institutions, medical researches and medical professionals;(f) the manner of functioning of the commission, the autonomous boards and the state medical councils;(g) the procedure to be followed at the meetings of the medical advisory council, including the quorum at its meetings;(h) the other languages in which and the manner in which the national eligibilitycum-entrance test shall be conducted;(i) the manner of conducting common counselling by the designated authority for admission to the under graduate medical education;(j) the designated authority, and the manner for conducting the national licentiate examination;(k) the manner of conducting common counselling by the designated authority for admission to the postgraduate courses;(l) the number of, and the manner in which, the experts, professionals, officers and other employees shall be made available by the commission to the autonomous boards;(m) the procedure to be followed at the meetings of the autonomous boards;(n) the curriculum at undergraduate level; (o) the curriculum for primary medicine, community medicine and family medicine; (p) the manner of imparting undergraduate courses by medical institutions; (q) the minimum requirements and standards for conducting courses and examinations for undergraduates in medical institutions;(r) the standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education at undergraduate level in medical institutions;(s) the standards of medical education at the postgraduate level and superspeciality level;(t) the curriculum at postgraduate level and super-speciality level; (u) the manner of imparting postgraduate and super-speciality courses by medical institutions;(v) the minimum requirements and standards for conducting postgraduate and super-specialty courses and examinations in medical institutions;(w) the standards and norms for infrastructure, faculty and quality of education in medical institutions conducting postgraduate and super-speciality medical education;(x) the procedure for assessing and rating the medical institutions; (y) the manner of carrying out inspections of medical institutions for assessing and rating such institutions;(z) the manner of conducting, and the manner of empanelling independent rating agencies to conduct, assessment and rating of medical institutions;(za) the manner of making available on website or in public domain the assessment and ratings of medical institutions;(zb) the measures to be taken against a medical institution for failure to maintain the minimum essential standards;(zc) the manner of regulating professional conduct and promoting medical ethics; (zd) the form of scheme, the particulars thereof, the fee to be accompanied and the manner of submitting scheme for establishing new medical college;(ze) the manner of making an application to the commission for approval of the scheme;(zf) the areas in respect of which criteria may be relaxed; (zg) the manner of taking disciplinary action by a state medical council for professional or ethical misconduct of registered medical practitioner or professional and the procedure for receiving complaints and grievances by ethics and medical registration board;(zh) the act of commission or omission which amounts to professional or ethical misconduct;(zi) other particulars to be contained in a national register; (zj) the form, including the electronic form and the manner of maintaining the national register;(zk) the manner in which any name or qualification may be added to, or removed from, the national register and the grounds for removal thereof;(zl) the form, the particulars to be contained in and the manner of maintaining a separate national register for licensed ayush practitioners who qualify the bridge course;(zm) the manner in which the title, diploma or qualification may be entered in the state register or the national register;(zn) the circumstances in which, and the period for which, the commission may permit a medical professional to perform surgery or practice medicine without qualifying the national licentiate examination;(zo) the manner in which, and the period for which temporary registration may be permitted to a foreign citizen;(zp) the manner of listing and maintaining medical qualifications granted by a university or medical institution in india;(zq) the manner of examining the application for grant of recognition; (zr) the manner of preferring an appeal to the commission for grant of recognition; (zs) the manner of including a medical qualification in the list maintained by the board;(zt) the manner of listing and maintaining medical qualifications which have been granted recognition before the date of commencement of this act 7 the matters in respect of which rules may be made are matters of procedure and administrative detail and it is not practicable to provide for them in the bill itself the delegation of legislative power is, therefore, of a normal character lok  sabha———— a billto provide for a medical education system that ensures availability of adequate and highquality medical professionals; that encourages medical professionals to adopt latest medical research in their work and to contribute to research; that has an objective periodic assessment of medical institutions and facilitates maintenance of a medical register for india and enforces high ethical standards in all aspects of medical services; that is flexible to adapt to changing needs and has an effective grievance redressal mechanism and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto————(shri jagat prakash nadda, minister of health and family welfare)