PG medical admission row: HC reserves order

The appeal assailed the order of a single judge which quashed the government orders dated March 9 and 23 identifying remote and difficult areas as wrought with serious anomalies. The judge had held that the classification was not made considering the geographical parameters of the areas, but other contingencies like number of vacancy and work load.

On Friday, a vacation bench of Justice V Parthiban and Justice PD Audikesavalu, on hearing arguments lasting for four hours by the government, and other impleading parties, said they will pass a detailed order.

The crux of the State’s arguments prevailed on the aspect that a committee comprising experts was constituted for classifying the areas and the committee after considering all the parameters has identified certain areas as remote and difficult for awarding incentive marks. The single judge had failed to consider that the identification was made only based on the recommendations of the expert committee and hence the order quashing the GOs must be interfered with.

Counsel for candidates who support the government’s stand submitted that in some places geographically in city limits, government doctors work for more than 12 to 18 hours, whereas in some rural areas they work only for a couple of hours.

Opposing the submissions, counsel for the original petitioner contended that the committee failed to follow the guideline set by the SC and has not considered the geographical parameters at all.