Mumbai: Amit-State Health Minister Prakash Abitkar has dismissed claims of a shortage of posts in rural hospitals, asserting that vacancies exist in primary health centres and rural hospitals. According to him, the problem lies in young doctors preferring urban or convenient postings rather than serving in remote locations. “If these doctors approach the Directorate of Health Services, they will definitely be accommodated in rural centres,” Abitkar said.
His statement, however, stands in sharp contrast to the situation on the ground. Close to 895 MBBS graduates across Maharashtra remain stranded, unable to begin their mandatory one-year bond service due to a lack of postings from the Health Department. The bond service is compulsory for medical students who graduate from government colleges, requiring them to work in rural hospitals for a fixed period or pay a heavy penalty.
The Maharashtra Association of Resident Doctors (MARD) and the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA) highlighted this issue during their meeting with Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif on Tuesday. They pointed out that despite repeated claims of a shortage of doctors in rural and tribal regions, hundreds of fresh graduates are waiting for their placements.
“Doctors are ready to serve, but there are simply not enough sanctioned posts at rural centres,” said FAIMA president Dr. Akshay Dongardive, underlining the irony of the situation.
Currently, the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) advertises only about 50 to 60 vacancies each month, while the number of waiting candidates continues to grow. With nearly 900 graduates in the queue, the system is unable to absorb them quickly enough.
This mismatch has exposed a deeper problem in the state’s rural healthcare policy—while ministers insist there are enough posts, doctors’ associations maintain that positions are not being created or advertised in line with the actual number of graduates.
The standoff has left hundreds of young doctors in limbo, raising serious questions about planning and implementation in Maharashtra’s efforts to strengthen rural health services.
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