*Can’t keep out med aspirants with low vision, says apex court* · The Times of India (Mumbai edition)
· 28 Aug 2018 New Delhi: After paving the way for the colour-blind to pursue medical studies, the SC has now allowed aspiring medical students suffering from low vision to get admission, saying the present law did not bar them from becoming a doctor. A bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Indira Banerjee came to the rescue of an Ahmedabad-based student who was denied admission in a medical college despite qualifying NEET 2018 with a rank of 419 in the physically handicapped category. The court brushed aside the MCI’s contention that persons with visual impairment of 40% or more could not be admitted to undergraduate medical courses and the beneficial provision of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, which provides reservation for the differently-abled, could not be invoked in MBBS/BDS courses. The petitioner, Purswani Ashutosh, moved SC through his advocate Govind Jee after failing to get a disability certificate, needed for counselling for admission in a medical college. During the pendency of the case in SC, MCI constituted a committee which opined that persons with visual impairment of 40% or more could not be admitted to undergraduate medical courses. But the bench refused to accept the committee’s recommendation and said the existing rule allowed students with low vision to get admission and it must be followed by MCI and medical colleges. “The Medical Education Regulations framed under Section 33 of the Medical Council Act, 1956 have statutory force and are binding on the MCI. The Committee cannot override the Medical Education Regulations,” the bench said while noting that the regulations had not yet been amended by the MCI. Search for old postings at: http://www.mail-archive.com/accessindia@accessindia.org.in/ To unsubscribe send a message to accessindia-requ...@accessindia.org.in with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in Disclaimer: 1. Contents of the mails, factual, or otherwise, reflect the thinking of the person sending the mail and AI in no way relates itself to its veracity; 2. AI cannot be held liable for any commission/omission based on the mails sent through this mailing list..
