Ukraine crisis: Plea in SC seeking guidelines for medical students to continue education in India
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Several medical students evacuated from Ukraine in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine crisis have moved the Supreme Court seeking directions to ensure their uninterrupted education.
The petitioners, who are Indian citizens, have stated that the education of about 14,000 evacuated Indian students has come to a complete halt as their careers stand to be irreparably jeopardized and their fundamental rights protected under Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution of India have become illusory.
The petition filed through Advocate Ashwarya Sinha has sought the migration of evacuated medical students from Ukraine to Indian medical colleges as a one-time measure in the equivalent academic year.
The unfortunate events in Ukraine have led to the evacuation of students and consequently, their education has inevitably come to a stand-still.
The advocate also said the evacuated students including the Petitioners herein are going through immense mental hardship and agony since their entire career hangs in ambiguity and their education has virtually come to a standstill since February 2022, with no foreseeable restoration of peace in the war-torn country.
"The unfortunate situation which has transpired in the present case is that the Petitioners are neither in a position to resume their education at their respective institutions in Ukraine nor permitted to continue their education at institutions in India under the present regulations," the petition said.
Therefore, the petitioners have also sought to issue an appropriate direction under Section 45 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, upon the NMC to frame guidelines and SOPs for the migration of Indian medical students who have been evacuated from Ukraine to Indian Medical Colleges as a one-time measure in the equivalent academic year.
The petition also sought to issue direction upon the Centre to issue necessary directions under Section 46 of the National Medical Commission Act, 2019; and an appropriate direction upon the respondents to provide adequate infrastructural/academic and financial support for the continuation of medical education of the evacuated Indian students from Ukraine.
The petition also sought to formulate guidelines by exercising jurisdiction conferred under Article 142 of the Constitution of India in light of the extraordinary situation on account of the ongoing war in Ukraine for protecting the interests of the evacuated students and their migration to Indian Medical Colleges.