ESIC internship clearance delayed, career of 108 foreign medical graduates in limbo

Aksheev Thakur

New Delhi, July 14

As many as 108 foreign medical graduates of Bihar have been waiting for the past over two months for the commencement of their internship at the state’s Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) hospital in Bihta, the delay being attributed to the lack of clearance from the health facility’s headquarters in Delhi.

Delay can make pupils ineligible for NEET-PG

• The students claim the delay is not only affecting them mentally, but it could even render them ineligible for the NEET-PG 2025
• The All-India Medical Students’ Association (Foreign Medical Students’ Wing) said: “The delay is causing concern and anxiety among students. The lack of clarity is affecting them mentally.”

The clearance from the ESIC headquarters is required because the graduates are waiting for the internship at the ESIC-run hospital. The Bihar Council of Medical Research (BCMR) had prepared the ‘recommendation list’ (merit list) of the foreign medical graduates on May 3, but the internships haven’t started even after the passage of over 70 days.

The students claim the delay is not only affecting them mentally, but it could even render them ineligible for the NEET-PG 2025.

In a letter to the ESIC headquarters, the All-India Medical Students’ Association (Foreign Medical Students’ Wing) said, “Despite the recommendation list being prepared by the BCMR on May 3, we are yet to receive an official notice to start the internships. The delay is causing significant concern and anxiety among students. The lack of clarity is affecting them mentally.”

The results of the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE)-2023 were announced in February. Clearing the exam is mandatory for the Indians having secured their medical degree from abroad and looking to practise medicine back home.

Foreign medical graduates in some other states, including Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Kerala, are said to be facing similar delays. After a long wait, the governments of Uttar Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh had earlier this month initiated the process to start internships.

An affected student, Shreya Tripathi, said, “A situation where we have to spend six to seven months only to begin internship is highly unfair. The government must look into the matter.”

The students even raised the matter with Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, but to no avail. “The Deputy CM assured us of resolving the issue. But that doesn’t appear to be happening. The delay has been taking a toll on us mentally and financially,” says Shivani Singh, another graduate.