Shimla- The state government’s tall claims of providing super specialty care and quality medical education in Himachal"s medical colleges and hospital have been exposed again. Will the National Medical Commission(NMC) Take Note of it?
The discontent among doctors in Himachal Pradesh has reached its peak due to the forced deputation of eleven senior faculty members, including two surgeons from the Department of Surgery at RKGMC Hamirpur and the Department of Biochemistry at Civil Hospital Kangra to Dr. RPGMC Tanda in Kangra district.
As many as 920 students are enrolled for MBBS courses in eight different medical colleges in Himachal Pradesh every year.
These include AIIMS, Bilaspur (50 MBBS seats) and Private MM Medical college Kumarhatti Solan, which has cornered 150 MBBS seats, the highest in Himachal.
Other government-run medical colleges are- Pt Jawahar Lal Nehru Medical college, Chamba, Lal Bhadur Shastri Medical college, Ner Chowk Mandi, Government Medical college, Nahan, Medical college, Hamirpur, IGMC Shimla and Dr RPGMC Tanda. They have been allotted 120 MBBS seats each by the NMC.
Sadly, there is not enough faculty to teach MBBS students at Dr RPHMC Tanda, let alone the plight of other newer medical colleges in Himachal Pradesh.
The plight of private medical College MM Medical college and hospital at Kumarhatti is even more deplorable as the college has neither enough teaching faculty, not does it have enough beds as per Norms of NMC meant for 150 MBBS students enrolled their every year, revealed insiders. There is no check on the medical college to monitor its functioning as it is affiliated to the same MM Medical university run by the same business person from Ambala, the students resent.
The sole purpose of this deputation order is to present a falsely enhanced image of the faculty position before the NMC at Dr RPGMC Tanda, which is reeling under shortage of faculty.
Among the faculty members of IGMC Shimla, being sent on deputation are Dr. Anchal Raheliya from the Department of Pharmacology, Dr. Jagjit Singh Chahal, Associate Professor of Biochemistry, Dr. Mukesh Surya, Radiology.
Furthermore, there are Dr. Suman Thakur, Dr. Geetika Gupta, Dr. Sanjay Mahajan, Dr. Lakshmi Nand, Dr. Vivek Chauhan, Dr. Rajeev Sood, and Dr. Neeraj Kumar, along with Dr. Shailaja Rawat from the Department of Chemistry at Civil Hospital Kangra, have also been unjustly forced into this ill-fated deputation.
The notification announcing these transfers was issued by M Sudha Debi, the Secretary of Health, under the direction of the state government on June 28 today.
This act of moving faculty members from Indira Gandhi Medical College and Hospital (IGMC) Shimla raises serious concerns about the authenticity of the government's commitment to providing specialized care to patients in IGMC Shimla, Tanda, the two oldest state level health institutions, leave alone other newer medical colleges opened across the state.
Dr RPGMC Tanda was opened in 1996, but still after 27 years down the line it cries for faculty members as it has 120 MBBS students to teach every year. 
Shri Lal Bahadur Shashtri medical college Ner Chowk enrolls 120 MBBS students since 2017, but it faces the same problems as staff of nurses and faculty are deputed from IGMC as when the NMC makes inspection.
It is evident that the government has failed to ensure a proper faculty in these two medical institutions over the years, compromising on the quality of medical education and patient care.
The Sukhu government has boasted about futuristic advancements like robotic surgery and the establishment of specialized infrastructure to deliver superior medical treatment.
However, the reality on the ground paints a different picture as the government has yet to address the chronic faculty shortage plaguing these medical colleges.
This issue extends beyond IGMC Shimla and Tanda, encompassing four other medical colleges established in the state over the years, revealed the faculty members.
Indian Medical Association, Resident Doctors Association, and the Himachal Pradesh Medical Officers Association have been persistently demanded proper infrastructure and faculty appointments across all medical colleges in the state.
Regrettably, their pleas have fallen on deaf ears, and the authorities have turned a blind eye to the pressing need for adequate healthcare professionals in these medical colleges to take care of the teaching of the new batches of medical students.
