Ayurveda colleges must have fulfilled norms by December 31 to start admission in next academic year: SC

The Supreme Court has said the Ayurveda colleges and their attached hospitals should fulfil the requirements of minimum standard for infrastructure and teaching and training facilities up to December 31 of every year for consideration of grant of permissions for undertaking admissions in the coming academic session.

A bench of Justices L Nageswara Rao and B R Gavai said if the institution is seeking grant of permission for undertaking admissions for the academic session 2022-23, it must have fulfilled the requirements of minimum standard as on December 31, 2021.

The top court allowed an appeal by the Central Council for Indian Medicine against the Karnataka High Court's orders of December 21, 2020 and September 24, 2020.

The High Court had then allowed Karnataka Ayurveda Medical Colleges and others' plea against the Union government's decision of September 5, 2018, which had rejected the permission to admit students to the Post Graduate courses for the academic year 2018-19 on the ground of non-availability of Central Research Laboratory and Animal House as required under the Indian Medicine Central Council (Post-Graduate Ayurveda Education) Regulations, 2016.

The bench said the High Court had erred in not correctly applying the law as laid down by this court in the case of Ayurved Shastra Seva Mandal.

The court said medical qualification granted to any student by a college run without prior sanction from the central government would not be deemed as recognised one. It also said no person is entitled to establish a medical college except with the previous permission of the central government. Similarly, no medical college can open a new or higher course of study or training, including a post-graduate course of study or training without the previous sanction of the central government.

Likewise, the top court pointed out that no medical college can increase its admission capacity in any course of study or training, including a post-graduate course of study or training without a prior nod from the Union government.

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