Doctors across Telangana are protesting a recent government order (GO) that increases the number of non-elected members on the Telangana Medical Council (TGMC). The government order, GOMs No 229, was issued on December 22 . It adds four new ex-officio members to the council, shifting control away from elected medical practitioners.
Junior doctors at medical colleges statewide showed their disapproval by wearing black bands during work. Various doctors’ groups support the protest. These include the Indian Medical Association, Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA), Telangana Junior Doctors Association (T-JUDA), Telangana Senior Residents Doctors Association (T-SRDA), and Telangana Teaching Government Doctors Association (TTGDA).
Government officials will meet with resident doctor representatives to discuss the issue. This meeting follows widespread protests against the new directive.
New Order Changes Council Composition
The Telangana Medical Council registers modern medicine practitioners and sets professional standards. Before the new order, 13 members were elected by registered medical practitioners. Four existing ex-officio members and eight nominated doctors also sat on the council.
GO 229 adds four new ex-officio positions. These include the commissioner of health and family welfare, an official from the state’s health department, the chief executive officer (CEO) of Arogyasri Healthcare Trust, and the director of Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), Hyderabad.
With these additions, the total strength of government appointees now exceeds the 13 elected members. The council’s overall strength increases from 25 to 29 members.
Doctors Allege Undermined Autonomy
Doctors argue the new order undermines TGMC’s autonomy. They state it allows excessive executive control over a professional regulatory body. Resident doctors also highlight the entry of non-medical professionals into the council.
Many new ex-officio positions are held by Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers. These officers are not required to be medical doctors. “How can non-medical individuals adjudicate clinical misconduct, influence disciplinary proceedings or direct anti-quackery action?” resident doctors asked.
T-JUDA stated the GO “dilutes the representation of elected doctors.” This, they said, “weakens the democratic voice of the medical fraternity within its own regulatory body.” Doctors also contend the order violates the Telangana Medical Practitioners Registration Act 1968 , which defines the council’s composition.
History of Disputes Over Council Structure
The composition of TGMC has been a point of contention between doctors and the state government since Telangana formed in 2014 . In 2015 , while adapting the 1968 Act, the Telangana government reduced the number of elected members from seven to five. It maintained seven government nominees.
A year later, in 2016 , the government formed an ‘interim’ council comprising only nominated members, postponing elections. The Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA) challenged these decisions in the Telangana High Court in 2019 .
HRDA argued that the GO reducing elected members was an executive order. It could not supersede law without state legislature approval. The government claimed the reduction was due to Telangana’s smaller population and doctor count after state bifurcation.
In December 2022 , the High Court sided with the doctors. It struck down the GO reducing elected members and declared the interim body “untenable.” The court ordered TGMC elections within three months. The government’s challenge to this ruling in the Supreme Court failed in 2023 . Elections for the council were then conducted later that year.
Despite previous legal challenges and court orders affirming the role of elected members, the Telangana government has again moved to increase the proportion of government appointees within the TGMC through the new order.