Lowering MDCAT passing marks Sindh govt’s domain, SHC told

The Sindh cabinet’s decision to lower the pass mark of the Medical & Dental College Admission Test (MDCAT) 2021 from 65 per cent to 50 per cent for the province was within the legislative and executive competence of the provincial government, the health secretary told the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Tuesday.

Filing comments on the Pakistan Medical Commission’s (PMC) petition against the Sindh cabinet’s decision to lower the pass mark from 65 per cent to 50 per cent for the province’s medical colleges, the health secretary questioned the enactment of the PMC Act, saying that the federal government had encroached upon the legislative domain of the provincial government.

The health secretary said that pursuant to its policy, the Sindh government had decided for the academic session 2020-21 in respect of private medical and dental colleges and universities to reserve 95 per cent of the seats for the candidates of Sindh domicile, and the remaining for other provinces on reciprocal basis.

He said that public and private medical colleges had been directed to admit candidates in MBBS and BDS programmes if they had scored not less than 50 per cent on MDCAT 2021.

He also said that if the trend of admission of other provinces continues, Sindh will face a severe shortage of doctors after a few years because the dropout ratio will stand at 1,800 every year, and in the next five years the cumulative figure will stand at around 10,000 fewer doctors and dental surgeons in the province.

The health secretary said that the World Health Organisation recommends one doctor for every 3,200 people, but with the current scenario the gap between doctors and people will widen more.

He said Sindh has its own dynamics, and distribution of medical and dental seats in districts are allocated on the basis of population. He added that once the public sector seats are filled on merit and self-finance, private sector seats start to get filled.

He also said the PMC’s irrational policy has created a lot of issues that need to be addressed.

He added that instant controversy pertains to the subject education that falls within the provincial domain, so the PMC cannot claim any regulatory mandate.

After taking the comments of the health secretary on record, a full bench of the SHC headed by Justice Mohammad Iqbal Kalhoro adjourned the hearing until Wednesday. The PMC had challenged the Sindh cabinet’s decision to lower the pass mark of MDCAT 2021 from 65 per cent to 50 per cent for the province, terming it unconstitutional and without jurisdiction.

The PMC’s counsel said the requirement of MDCAT being mandatory within the legal mandate and the domain of the commission was now well established on account of the number of judgments of the superior courts declaring MDCAT as the basic minimum statutory requirement for admission to any medical college in Pakistan.

He said that the impugned action of the Sindh government would deprive students with higher merit from not only Sindh but from all over the country who come from modest backgrounds to obtain admissions to medical and dental colleges.

The medical commission sought an injunction against Sindh’s medical colleges and universities for giving admissions to those students in MBBS and BDS programmes who had less than 65 percent marks.