Govt plans bonds to stop doctors' brain drain

April 24, 2012

New Delhi, April 24: India has finally decided to cut down on brain drain that is crippling its medical sector.

Now, US-bound doctors for higher medical studies will have to sign a bond with the ministry and honour the document by returning home after finishing their courses.

Union health Ghulam Ghulam Nabi Azad said that the US is insisting on a government No Objection Certificate (NOC) for every student enrolling with an American institute from this academic session.

In the last three years, 3,000 doctors went abroad for studies, and did not return.

"If a student does not come back from the US, he won't be allowed to practice there," Azad said.

Take the example of the premiere All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). A first-of-its-kind study by AIIMS' department of hospital administration found that it takes Rs 1.7 crore to produce a single MBBS doctor at AIIMS.

The figure includes both the direct (services of the faculty and stipend) and indirect (services of non-teaching personnel and furniture) costs incurred by the hospital over the course's five-and-a-half-year period.

According to the study, AIIMS spends at least Rs 31.31 lakh on every undergraduate student per year per course as against an annual fee of an MBBS student of Rs 850 per year that includes room and board and tuition fee.

Over 53% of AIIMS students leave India to work abroad. According to the Medical Council of India (MCI), till July 27, 2011, 767 doctors may have left for foreign shores.

These doctors had asked the MCI to issue them Good Standing Certificates (GSC) - a mandatory requirement for doctors seeking work in hospitals abroad. The MCI issued 1,264 GSCs in 2010, 1,386 GSCs in 2009 and 1,002 in 2008.

India has only one doctor for every 1,700 people. In comparison, the doctor-population ratio globally is 1.5:1,000. Somalia has one doctor for 10,000 population. China's doctor population ratio stands at 1:1063, Korea 1:951, Brazil 1:844, Japan 1:606, Thailand 1:500, the UK 1:469, the US 1:350 and Germany 1:296.

A recent Planning Commission report said India is short of six lakh doctors, 10 lakh nurses and two lakh dental surgeons. Indian doctors, however, form 5% of the medical workforce in developed countries. Almost 60,000 Indian physicians are working in countries like the US, the UK, Canada and Australia alone.

Azad said, "No other country except the US is asking for this NoC. Those who apply to go to the US for studies from 2012 will have to give us a bond saying they would come back after finishing the studies. If they don't fulfill the bond obligation, we can write to the US to deny the student permission to practice."

A recent paper in the Lancet said India had eight healthcare workers, 3.8 allopathic doctors and 2.4 nurses per 10,000 population. When compared to other countries, this is about half the WHO benchmark of 25.4 workers per 10,000 people.

According to MCI's Indian Medical Register that was last updated in April, 2011, the nation supposedly boasts of 840,678 registered medical practitioners. However, the data includes names of doctors who were registered way back in 1933. Chances of these doctors being alive is dim, admits MCI.

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IndiGo meltdown: 200 flights cancelled; Bengaluru hit hard with 42 cancellations

News Network

December 3,2025

IndiGo, India’s largest airline, is battling one of its worst operational disruptions in recent years, with hundreds of delays and cancellations throwing domestic travel into chaos.

Government data on Tuesday showed its on-time performance plunging to 35%, an unusual dip for a carrier long associated with punctuality.

By Wednesday afternoon, airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad had collectively reported close to 200 cancellations, stranding travellers across the country.

Crew Shortage After New Duty Norms

A major trigger behind the meltdown is a severe crew shortage, especially among pilots, following the rollout of revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms last month.

The rules mandate longer rest hours and more humane rosters — a shift IndiGo has struggled to incorporate across its vast network.

Sources said several flights were grounded due to lack of cabin crew, while some delays stretched upwards of eight hours.

With IndiGo controlling over 60% of India’s domestic aviation market, the ripple effect has impacted airports nationwide.

IndiGo Issues Apology, Lists “Compounding Factors”

In a statement, IndiGo acknowledged the large-scale disruption:

“We sincerely apologise to customers. A series of unforeseen operational challenges — technology glitches, winter schedule changes, adverse weather, system congestion and updated FDTL norms — created a compounding impact that could not have been anticipated.”

To stabilise operations, the airline has begun calibrated schedule adjustments for the next 48 hours, aiming to restore punctuality. Affected passengers are being offered refunds or alternate travel arrangements, IndiGo said.

What the FDTL Rules Require

The FDTL norms, designed to reduce pilot fatigue, cap duty and flying hours as follows:
•   Maximum 8 hours of flying per day
•   35 hours per week
•   125 hours per month
•   1,000 hours per year

Crew must also receive rest equalling twice the flight duration, with a minimum 10-hour rest period in any 24-hour window.

The DGCA introduced these limits to enhance flight safety.

Hyderabad: 33 Flights Cancelled, Long Queues Reported

Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport saw heavy early-morning crowds as 33 IndiGo flights (arrivals and departures) were cancelled.

The airport clarified on X that operations were normal, advising passengers to contact IndiGo directly for latest flight status.

Cancellations included flights to and from Visakhapatnam, Goa, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Madurai, Hubli, Bhopal and Bhubaneswar.

Bengaluru: 42 Flights Disrupted

Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport recorded 42 cancellations — 22 arrivals and 20 departures — affecting routes to Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Goa, Kolkata and Lucknow.

Passengers Vent on Social Media

Irate travellers took to X to share their experiences. One passenger stranded in Hyderabad wrote: “I have been here since 3 a.m. and missed an important meeting.”

Another said: “My flight was pushed from 1:55 PM to 2:55 PM and now 4:35 PM. I was informed only three minutes before entering the airport.”

Delhi Airport Hit by Tech Glitch

At Delhi Airport, the disruption deepened due to a slowdown in the Amadeus system — used for reservations, check-ins and departure control.

The technical issue led to longer queues and sluggish processing, adding to delays already worsened by staff shortages.

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