FMGE Exam 2021: AMD urges the Delhi High Court to postpone the exam due to the pandemic

The Association of MD Physicians (AMD) has requested the Delhi High Court to postpone the Foreign Medical Graduate Exam 2021 (FMGE) due to the current spread of COVID-19 in India. The FMGE exam 2021 has been scheduled to be held on June 18. The AMD has put forth this request on behalf of students who are going to appear for the FMGE exam 2021. Read on to know more about AMD's request to getting the FMGE exam 2021 postponed. 

AMD requests postponing the FMGE 2021

The Association of MD Physicians also has a fair amount of foreign medical graduates who have completed their graduations abroad and have qualified for medical practice in India through the FMGE exams. The AMD has said that there are a limited number of cities being notified as centres for the FMGE screening test. As a result, a large number of candidates will be forced to travel to the centres all across India, without having received even the first dose of vaccination. 

The AMD's plea has been opposed by the National Board of Examination (NBE) and National Medical Commission (NMC) on the grounds that FMGE is only a qualifying exam and in case any students miss out on taking the exams in June, they can simply appear for the FMGe exam again in December 2021, and that the exam should not be cancelled just for a small set of students. 

The AMD had filed their petition in the Delhi High Court through advocates Adit S Pujari and Chaitanya Sundriyal. Justice Amit Bansal headed the bench and after hearing the submissions from both parties has listed the matter for further hearing on Friday. Here is the official petition put out by the AMD to the Delhi High Court: 

“At such times, when the central government is undertaking strictest measures to control the pandemic and all the state governments imposing lockdowns and curfews, movement and transport restrictions, the members of the petitioner association and other eligible foreign medical graduates are being forced to appear for the FMGE Screening Test on June 18, while putting themselves and people around them at risk of contracting COVID-19"

Advocates T Singhdev and Kirtiman Singh, who are representing NMC and NBE, raised objections to this plea over the grounds that proper measures were being taken to conduct the exam and a lot of checks were being put in place to ensure the safety of everyone involved in the exam. They also countered the argument over the fact that students who would miss out on giving the exams in June could appear for the FMGE exam in December 2021. Stay tuned for more updates on the FMGE exam 2021 date and other education news. 

IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK