Thursday, November 13, 2008
Move to give certificates to traditional practitioners flayed

Tirunelveli: Students of Government Siddha Medical College here abstained from classes, struck work and observed a fast on Wednesday in protest against the State Government’s proposal to give Registered Indian Medicine Practitioners (RIMP) certificates to the 30,000-odd traditional practitioners.

The protesting students said that awarding of RIMP certificates had been strictly prohibited by the Union Government under Sec. 48 of 1970 of Indian Medicine Act and hence giving of certificates to the traditional practitioners could not be accepted.


In violation of this Act, the Special Commissioner for Indian Medicine and Homeopathy G.A. Rajkumar had revealed the State Government’s proposal to give certificates to the traditional practitioners of Tamil Nadu.

“Besides violating the Union Government’s Act, the State Government’s announcement will also pave way for the birth of hundreds of thousands of quacks, who, without having proper and adequate practice, will pose serious threat to the patients, particularly the rural poor. Ultimately, it will shatter the public’s trust on the Indian medicine system,” the students said warning that they would commence indefinite protest if this announcement was not withdrawn.

At a time when academically qualified students were being admitted to the Government Siddha Medical Colleges, the issue of RIMP certificates to the traditional practitioners would destroy the future of Siddha doctors and Siddha medical students, they warned.

Though there was a scope for the appointment of Siddha doctors under the Centre’s National Rural Health Mission and the Union Government had already issued an announcement in favour of appointing the Siddha doctors, no such appointment had been effected so far.

Hence, the Central Government, apart from appointing Siddha doctors under the National Rural Health Mission, should also appoint these doctors in the ESI and railway hospitals across the country.

As 1,316 Siddha doctors vacancies in the primary health centres, taluk hospitals and the general hospitals in the district headquarters in Tamil Nadu are yet to be filled up, the State Government should take immediate measures for the recruitment of Siddha doctors.

Separate Minister
Like the States of Kerala and Gujarat, having a separate Minister for Department of Ayurvedic Medicine, Tamil Nadu Government should also create a new department for Siddha Medicine and establish a university exclusively for siddha medicine, which would take the Tamil medicine to the world community.