But education cannot be converted into coercion—and a recommendation cannot be transformed into a punitive condition merely through an administrative notice.
On 4 April 2025, the West Bengal Medical Council issued a notice stating that, without 30 credit points within five years, updating of registration would not be permitted. This was followed later that month by elaborate guidelines governing the allocation of credit points.
The fundamental question is: under which presently operative statutory provision has WBMC made 30 CME credit points an indispensable condition for updating or renewing a doctor’s registration?
Clause 1.2.3 of the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002 states that a physician should participate in professional meetings under Continuing Medical Education programmes for at least 30 hours every five years. But it does not expressly state that failure to accumulate 30 credit points will invalidate a permanent registration, prevent its updating, or extinguish the doctor’s right to practise.
The NMC’s Registered Medical Practitioner (Professional Conduct) Regulations, notified on 2 August 2023, contained a separate CPD framework. However, on 23 August 2023, the NMC itself issued another Gazette notification holding those regulations in abeyance with immediate effect. The Gazette expressly declared that they would remain “not operative and effective” until a further Gazette notification. Simultaneously, the 2002 Ethics Regulations were adopted and restored with immediate effect.
Therefore, an administrative requirement cannot legitimately be founded upon provisions contained in the very regulations that the NMC has formally kept in abeyance.
West Bengal Doctors Forum repeatedly sought clarification from WBMC through representations and applications under the Right to Information Act. Representations were also sent to the Department of Health and Family Welfare and the Principal Secretary. On 9 January 2026, the Health Department reportedly directed WBMC to answer these questions. Yet no clear, reasoned and legally supported response has been provided.
More disturbingly, during our recent visit to the WBMC office, the Acting Registrar appeared to rely upon the Professional Conduct Regulations of 2 August 2023—without recognising that those very regulations had been formally placed in abeyance only 21 days later.
This is not a minor clerical misunderstanding. An obligation affecting thousands of doctors cannot rest upon an inoperative regulation, an internal interpretation or an unsupported administrative decision.
We therefore call upon the Government of West Bengal, the Health Department and the government-nominated members of WBMC to intervene immediately. Until WBMC publicly identifies a clear and currently operative statutory provision authorising this linkage, the notices making 30 CME credit points mandatory for registration updating or renewal should be withdrawn or kept in abeyance.
Let CME remain a genuine instrument of learning—not a source of harassment, commercialisation or administrative intimidation.
Meanwhile, the Ethics and Medical Registration Board of the NMC has published a new draft proposal concerning various aspects of medical practice, registration, renewal and related requirements, inviting comments and suggestions from medical professionals. The document will shortly be uploaded to our website, www.wbdf.in? .
We request every medical professional to study the proposal carefully and share their observations with us. West Bengal Doctors Forum will compile the feedback received and engage constructively with the NMC so that the collective concerns and recommendations of the medical fraternity are properly represented.
In our next episode, we shall separately examine the legality, statutory foundation and implementation of mandatory registration updating or renewal every five years.
Thank you
Team WBDF
