NHRC Cracks the Whip Again — Fresh Deadline to Health Ministry on "Inhumane Duty Hours for Doctors".
Doctors’ patience wearing thin as UDF’s plea awaits real action
New Delhi/Shimla/Chandigarh, October 27 — The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has once again pulled up the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
This time, the Commission has given the Ministry till November 20 to submit a full compliance report.
The report must spell out what action has been taken against medical institutions — including RG Kar Medical College, Kolkata — for violating duty-hour norms under the PGMER 2023.
The NHRC’s reminder comes after months of silence from the Ministry. Despite repeated notices, there has been no satisfactory reply since the first order issued in May 2025.
The case goes back to a complaint filed by Dr. Lakshya Mittal, National President of the United Doctors Front (UDF).
He had raised the alarm over “inhumane and exploitative working hours” for doctors across India.
According to him, doctors in government hospitals and medical colleges are being pushed to work beyond 48 hours a week or 12 hours per shift, flouting the Health Ministry’s own directives.
The result — exhausted doctors, compromised patient care, and, at times, tragic outcomes like the RG Kar Medical College incident in Kolkata.
The Commission examined the reports sent by the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the Health Ministry.
It found that the rules are clear — under Regulation 5.2 (II), postgraduate doctors must get reasonable working hours and rest. Under Regulation 9.1, any violation should attract penalties for the institution.
But nothing seems to move on the ground. Despite the NHRC’s earlier direction on June 11, no compliance report has been received.
Now, the Commission has issued a final reminder, demanding full details of the action taken against officials and institutions violating these norms.
Even as the issue boils, Health Minister J.P. Nadda, rated as one of the most proactive ministers in the Modi Government, has maintained a puzzling silence on the matter.
Senior faculty members across institutions like PGIMER Chandigarh and IGMC Shimla reveal that they too had worked for 36 hours at a stretch during their residency.
“If today’s residents don’t work that long, what will they learn?” is the common refrain.
This outdated mindset, say doctors, is the root of the problem — a culture that glorifies overwork instead of reforming it.
And it’s this attitude that has made institutions lax and indifferent toward implementing the 8-hour duty regime across health institutions.
For India’s overworked doctors, this delay has crossed all limits.
“Every month that passes without action only adds to the frustration. We’ve seen inquiry after inquiry, but no accountability,” said Dr. Mittal.
The big question now — will the NHRC finally act, not just ask?
Because the doctors’ patience is wearing thin. And the nation cannot afford another tragedy born out of neglect and official apathy.
#MedicalJustice #HumanRights #DoctorsSpeak #SystemFailure
