Supreme Court seeks Centre’s view on national policy for mandatory rural doctor service

While hearing a petition challenging Karnataka’s law that forces medical graduates, including those from private and deemed universities, to complete a year of rural service, the Supreme Court sought the Union government’s position on a possible national framework for such mandates. Justices P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe highlighted the absence of a uniform policy and asked the Centre to clarify if compulsory rural postings are a principle needed to improve public health.

The Centre’s Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati explained that only postgraduate trainees are currently required to serve on rotation and that health remains a state subject, though a committee has recommended consistent bonds nationwide. Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, acting as amicus, proposed that any guidelines draw on Article 21’s right to life and the Directive Principles. Justice Narasimha warned that without clear policy, rural populations risk losing access as private hospitals expand.

The bench adjourned, requesting the Centre to state its intent to formulate a policy and identify stakeholders for consultation. The petition targets the Karnataka Compulsory Service Training Act, 2012, and its 2015 rules that tie a one-year rural stint to the issuance of a no-objection certificate for medical registration.