Mumbai (AsiaNews) - The Indian Ministry of Health is suspending certificates
"with no obligation to return", which allow medical residents
studying in the U.S.
to remain overseas after graduation. The ministry thus attempts to stop the
brain drain, which in the last three years has counted 3 thousand future
doctors. Too many, considering that India
has one doctor for every 2 thousand people, and the U.S. one doctor for every 469
patients. According to ministry data, in 2011/2012 only 30% of graduates in the
U.S. has since returned to India.
The NORI ("under no obligation to return to India")
is a compulsory certificate for Indian doctors who want to settle in the United States,
once they have completed their nine years of training. Ironically, before the departure of a student,
the U.S. called on the
Ministry of Health (of all countries in the developing world, ed) to compile a
"statement of need" certificate, stating "the student is being
allowed to go and study medicine in the US
because he is required to return and serve India".
In addition to the
suspension of NORI, the Indian government is studying guidelines, which should
be submitted by January 2013, but should apply to students already in foreign
residency programs.
To increase the labor force, the government recently amended the National Council of Human Resources in
Health Bill, which allows physicians to hold the Overseas Citizens of
India Card to work in India.
At present, the country has a density of 0.5 doctors per 1000 citizens. The
Medical Council of India intends to reduce the imbalance between doctor and
patient to a doctor per 1000 people, by 2031.