Madhya Pradesh High Court Asks State To Not Impose New Conditions For Recognizing Nursing Colleges For 2024-25 Session

The Jabalpur bench of the Madhya Pradesh MP High Court has directed the State authorities to grant recognition to Nursing Colleges on the basis of existing requirements under the Madhya Pradesh Nursing Institutions Recognition Rules, 2018 and not to alter or impose any new condition with any additional requirement for Session 2024-25.

The division bench of Justice Sanjay Dwivedi and Justice Achal Kumar Paliwal observed, “...the CBI had also conducted inspection of the colleges so as to categorize them and all inspections got done taking note of the existing rules, therefore we do not want to create further complication and to allow the respondents to impose any new condition upon the petitioners-colleges so as to get recognition and other formalities. We are of the opinion that the Session 2024-25 should be continued with the existing procedures and provisions and we cannot allow the respondents to refuse any recognition on the basis of any new condition imposing any additional requirement.”

In the present case, the petitioners had raised a grievance that while submitting online form for seeking recognition, respondent No.2 i.e. M.P. Nurses Registration Council, is not accepting the form for the reason that there is a pre-condition that the colleges seeking recognition must have their independent hospital having at least 100 beds.

The counsel for petitioners submitted that there is no such provision describing this requirement and even since long, recognition was being granted to the colleges having affiliation with Government hospital and also independent hospital having capacity of 100 beds or more than that. But this condition cannot be complied with in such a short time and it is therefore arbitrary and illegal. It was further submitted that for the Session 2024-25 this condition cannot be imposed and if the respondents want to introduce any such condition, some reasonable time should be granted to the petitioners so as to establish their own hospital with the requisite capacity of beds.

The counsel for respondent No.2 Council submitted that a committee constituted by the High Court has also proposed that a college seeking recognition should have its own independent hospital, because the provisions of the Madhya Pradesh Nursing Institutions Recognition Rules, 2018 prescribe such a requirement.

As per Rule 4(iii) of the 2018 Rules, Schedule-III prescribes the requirement of affiliation of hospital and according to it, the affiliation with a Government hospital and private hospital with a requisite capacity shown in the said schedule i.e. Schedule-III should be there.

Thus, the counsel for the petitioners submitted that they had fulfilled the said requirement of the existing rule and therefore, any new condition compelling them to have their own independent hospital cannot be imposed and on that basis they cannot be denied recognition for the Session 2024-25.

The division bench thereby, directed the respondents to consider the request of recognition of the petitioners on the basis of existing requirement and noted that on earlier occasion they have been granted recognition with their affiliation of the Government hospital or some private hospital fulfilling the requisite requirement as shown in Schedule-III of the Rules, 2018.

"Accordingly, the present petition stands disposed of directing the respondents to consider the request of recognition of the petitioners on the basis of existing requirement and taking note of the fact that on earlier occasion they have been granted recognition with their affiliation of the Government hospital or some private hospital fulfilling the requisite requirement as has been shown in Schedule-III of the Rules, 2018," the bench said. 

The court further said that respondent No.2 shall open the portal so as to enable the petitioners' colleges and other colleges to move their applications for recognition, for three days and this intimation would be available in the website so that every college shall fulfil the formalities within the given period.

Thus, the petition was disposed of.

Case Title: Jabalpur Institute of Nursing Sciences and Research And Others Versus The State Of Madhya Pradesh And Others

Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (MP) 303

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