Mumbai: More than a thousand homeopaths have applied for registration with the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC), even as doctors plead govt to rollback this move which they warn poses a risk to public health. MMC officials confirmed that 1,040 applications have been received through a portal that opened last Wednesday. According to government estimates, Maharashtra has about 9,000 homeopaths who have completed a one-year certificate course in pharmacology. There is no age limit to this. Any homeopathic practitioner could opt for this shortcut entry into modern medicine without completing MBBS training. There are around 90,000 homeopaths in Maharashtra. Dr Vinky Rughwani, the MMC’s administrator, said the applications will not move forward without clear standard operating procedures. “Practicing medicine is a serious responsibility. We are forming a committee to decide what homeopaths can prescribe. This will include senior doctors from government medical colleges as well as representatives of the homeopathic community,” he said. The move aims to minimise any potential risk to the wellbeing of the general public. But many doctors argue the MMC should have opposed the move at the onset. The council, they say, has been weakened by the absence of elected leadership. Its elections have been stalled for years, leaving it under an administrator and eroding its autonomy.“We find it disgusting that applications are being recieved while our objections are ignored,” said Dr Santosh Kadam, president of the Indian Medical Association (IMA) in Maharashtra. He added, “We are still waiting for the government’s invitation to dialogue. But the medical education minister is in London. If nothing changes, we will move the Supreme Court.”The IMA had given state medical education minister Hasan Mushrif one week to reverse the decision, and has signalled that another round of strikes could follow if demands are not met. Meanwhile, Bahubali Shah, head of the Maharashtra Council of Homeopathy, said his office has already received close to 8,000 requests for “no objection” certificates. These are required for step MMC registration applications. “We contest these standard operating procedures. Homeopaths have completed the certifcate course. If restrictions are imposed on us, they should also be applied to MBBS doctors,” said Shah.
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