New Delhi, November 10: The National Medical Commission (NMC) has issued an advisory cautioning students and parents against fake medical colleges and fraudulent admission offers, urging them to verify an institution’s authenticity and regulatory approval before taking admission or making any payment.
The advisory follows directions issued by the Supreme Court in an ongoing case, Ayesha Jain v Amity University, Noida and Others, asking regulatory authorities, including the NMC, to sensitise students and parents about institutions operating without the required statutory permissions.
The Supreme Court’s directions came in the context of a reported case involving a purported fake medical college allegedly operating from a farmhouse and claiming to offer various courses.
In its advisory, the NMC urged students and parents to exercise due diligence and independently verify the regulatory status of institutions before enrolling in any medical programme.
For students seeking admission to MBBS courses, the commission advised checking whether the college is included in its official list of recognised medical colleges and whether it has received the necessary permission to admit students for the relevant academic year.
The NMC clarified that a college’s presence on an official list or its permission to operate in a previous academic year does not automatically guarantee approval for subsequent years or admission beyond its sanctioned intake.
Students have also been advised to verify the institution’s permission status, approved courses and number of seats through official NMC records and the Medical Assessment and Rating Board.
The commission cautioned against relying solely on college brochures, websites, advertisements, social media promotions or purported approval letters circulated by institutions and their representatives.
It further advised candidates to complete admissions through authorised counselling channels, including the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) or the concerned State or Union Territory counselling authority.
Warning against financial fraud, the NMC urged students not to make admission-related payments to unauthorised agents, personal bank accounts or unverified intermediaries.
The commission also clarified that approval, affiliation, registration or recognition granted by another authority for a specific purpose cannot be treated as permission from the NMC to conduct an MBBS course.
Students and parents have been encouraged to report suspected fake medical colleges, unauthorised MBBS programmes, forged approval documents, fraudulent admission offers and misleading claims to the NMC and other competent authorities.
The advisory further clarified that courses such as pharmacy, nursing, Ayurveda and allied healthcare programmes fall under different statutory or regulatory authorities. Their approval status should therefore be verified with the respective competent bodies.
Emphasising the importance of vigilance, the NMC said timely verification and reporting of fraudulent activities were essential to protect students from financial losses and safeguard the standards and integrity of medical education in the country.
