Mumbai: Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) has approached state cyber police after an internal scrutiny of its online portal allegedly found that over 30 foreign medical graduates obtained temporary registration despite not clearing the mandatory foreign medical graduate examination (FMGE).In its complaint, MMC alleged that the candidates uploaded forged or suspicious documents on its FMG (foreign medical graduate) portal to obtain registration-related benefits despite not meeting the eligibility criteria. Cyber police have begun a preliminary inquiry.FMGE is mandatory for Indian citizens and overseas citizens of India who hold a primary medical degree from a foreign country and wish to practise medicine in India. It is regulated by National Medical Commission and conducted by National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences.This is the second controversy to affect the state’s health and regulatory systems this week; the recruitment process for FDA inspector posts was cancelled after police found that the exam paper was leaked over social media a few days before the test.A senior MMC official said the irregularities came to light on Aug 7 during an internal check of candidates registered through the portal. Officials noticed that some had obtained temporary registration despite having failed to clear FMGE. Officials also examined candidates’ login profiles and found suspicious documents had been uploaded. The verification reportedly identified over 30 such candidates.“Our officials found some suspicious documents on the website. It is too premature to comment right now. Police have started a probe,” said the MMC official.Cyber police will examine the documents uploaded by the candidates, their login records, IP addresses, application details and other digital evidence to determine whether the documents were forged and whether any person or intermediary helped them in the alleged fraud.
