The Supreme Court will hear a batch of petitions on September 15, seeking permission to allow around 20,000 Indian students, who returned from Ukraine during the Russian invasion, to complete their medical education in India.
The Bench of Justice Hemant Gupta and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia passed the order on Monday, after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta sought time to take instructions from the Central government regarding the report submitted by the Lok Sabha Committee on External Affairs on August 3.
The SG said that it “seems” the Ministry of External Affairs has given a positive go ahead to Ukraine-returned medical students to pursue medicine in India.
The report, presented before the top court of the country by the petitioners, had recommended the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare to consider accommodating the students who returned from Ukraine in Indian private medical colleges as a one-time measure.
The petitioners, while referring to the report, sought directions to both the Union Government and the National Medical Commission, regarding the Indian students returning from Ukraine.
The Apex Court had, during its last hearing on the matter, enquired about the policy framed by the Central Government regarding the earlier directions passed by the Court to frame a scheme for students who could not complete their medical education in foreign countries due to the pandemic.
The Supreme Court was apprised that the students, who had finished their courses but could not complete internship in foreign countries like China, were allowed to do the same here. However, as far as the students from Ukraine were concerned, the Court was told that all of them were not in their final year.
Case Title: Archita and others versus National Medical Commission and others, WP(c) 607/2022 and 6 connected cases.