The Union Health Ministry has appointed 24 part-time members to the National Medical Commission (NMC) and its four autonomous boards—Undergraduate Medical Education Board, Postgraduate Medical Education Board, Medical Assessment and Rating Board, and Ethics and Medical Registration Board—through a transparent draw of lots, as mandated by the NMC Act, 2019. Union Health Minister J P Nadda oversaw the process on July 15, with appointments effective for two years.

Ten members were selected from state and Union Territory nominees in the Medical Advisory Council, representing Gujarat, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Andhra Pradesh, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Jharkhand, Chandigarh, and Madhya Pradesh. Nine members were chosen from State Medical Councils, including West Bengal, Karnataka, Nagaland, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Jammu and Kashmir, Assam, Manipur, and Uttarakhand. Four part-time members were appointed to the autonomous boards, with one expert from Jammu and Kashmir named to the Search Committee.

Dr. Abhijat Sheth, head of the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences, was appointed NMC chairperson on July 11 for a four-year term. The appointments, filling vacancies dormant for six months, aim to strengthen medical education regulation amid ongoing controversies, including a CBI probe into alleged corruption and delays in approving new medical colleges. Full-time member positions, including three board presidencies, remain vacant for over nine months, hindering NMC operations.

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