HC rebuke to Odisha govt over no time frame in identifying fake doctors

Taking cognizance of the fake doctors prowling the rural and semi-urban areas in the State, the Orissa High Court on Friday ordered the State government to set a time frame to complete the certificate verification process of the doctors in Odisha.

The court expressed its displeasure after reading the affidavit of the State Health & Family Welfare Department in which it was stated that the CDMOs have been directed to conduct the verification process. But no time frame to complete the same was mentioned.

The High Court directed the Odisha government to submit an additional affidavit by February 20.

During the hearing, the amicus curiae, senior lawyer Gautam Mishra told the court that information has been received about fake doctors treating patients in Malkangiri, Rayagada, Ganjam and Mayurbhanj districts. In such a situation, it will be easy for people to know about the doctors they are consulting if the information of all the doctors in the state is available online.

It is pertinent to mention here that the World Bank, in a survey report, had alleged that 51 per cent of the doctors treating patients in different Indian states lack adequate educational qualifications.

The High Court had directed the Health and Family Welfare Department to launch a probe and submit a report in this regard on December 21, 2022,

Following the directive, the Odisha H&FW department issued an order to all CDMOs in the state to identify all such doctors and verify their educational certificates. However, the department did not set a time frame for the process, which irked the High Court.

(Reported By Gautam Panda, OTV)