SUBHASH MISHRA
Dhanbad, July 15: In a significant development, the Jharkhand Health Department has put on hold its recent order deputing 103 PG bond Senior Residents and Tutors from five government medical colleges to their respective district Sadar hospitals.
On Monday, Joint Secretary Lalit Mohan Shukla had issued a notification placing these doctors, currently serving in medical colleges, on deputation to the Sadar hospitals in their districts. However, on Tuesday (July 15), the department verbally instructed principals of all five medical colleges not to release any doctors as the deputation order is under review.
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Confusion Over Deputation Policy and NMC Directive
As per state policy, postgraduate medical students from Jharkhand’s government medical colleges are required to serve a mandatory three-year bond in the state after completing their degrees.
In line with this, the department had posted 129 PG bond doctors in November 2023 at the five government medical colleges — MGMMCH Jamshedpur, SNMMCH Dhanbad, PJMCH Dumka, SBMCH Hazaribagh, and MMCH Palamu — with concurrent deputation at the respective Sadar hospitals.
However, the National Medical Commission (NMC) on July 2, 2024, issued a directive cancelling the deputation of Senior Residents and Tutors to Sadar hospitals, instructing the state to recall all such doctors to their parent medical colleges within a week.
Surprisingly, on July 14, 2025, the Health Department reissued an order deputing the same 103 doctors to Sadar hospitals, leaving the medical fraternity puzzled and frustrated.
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Doctors Question Policy Clarity and Batch-wise Discrepancy
One of the PG bond doctors from the 2020–23 batch expressed confusion over the repeated deputation orders despite NMC’s clear rejection of such placements last year.
“It is beyond our understanding why the department insists on peripheral deputation when NMC has already invalidated it,” the doctor said.
Further raising concerns, doctors alleged that only the 2020–23 batch has been targeted for deputation, while those from the 2019–21 and 2021–24 batches have been left out. “This selective approach is unfair and arbitrary,” said a Senior Resident.
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Junior Doctors Demand Safety, NMC Compliance
Dr. Sushil Kumar, state chairman of the Junior Doctors Network (JDN), an association of Senior Residents and Tutors, urged the Health Department to comply with NMC norms before posting doctors to Sadar hospitals.
“Doctors are not against working at Sadar hospitals, but the department must ensure security and proper facilities as per the Supreme Court’s guidelines,” he said.
He also highlighted a recent incident where a female Senior Resident was assaulted during a night shift at Hazaribagh Sadar Hospital, underscoring the urgent need for protective measures in such postings.
The medical community now awaits a final decision from the Health Department, calling for clarity, consistency, and adherence to established norms.
