Private medical colleges in Telangana credit ₹25,000 stipend, take back ₹20,000 in cash, allege MBBS students

Several MBBS interns in Telangana’s private medical colleges have come forward with allegations of non-payment of stipends and systemic intimidation. Despite a 2023 government order mandating a monthly stipend of ₹25,906 for medical interns across both government and private colleges in the State, students say many private institutions are flouting the rule, paying as little as ₹2,000 per month or ₹5,000 in some cases.

Speaking to The Hindu, interns from multiple private institutions detailed disturbing practices employed by the administrations to create an illusion of compliance. At Patnam Mahender Reddy Institute of Medical Sciences, for instance, an intern alleged that ₹25,000 is credited to their bank account every month, only to be withdrawn and ₹20,000 returned to the college in cash. “We are made to open specific bank accounts just for this purpose. It is all a show so they can claim compliance on paper,” said the intern.

When students raised these concerns with the college management, they were told that while stipends could not be paid, the institution would waive bus and hostel fees instead. “But even those promises remain only on paper,” the intern added.

“We work 36-hour to 40‑hour shifts, caring for real patients, often in inadequate facilities and instead of fair pay, we are being extorted and silenced,” said another intern.

The issue, long festering under the surface, has recently gained momentum when interns from multiple colleges formed informal groups to protest and submit written representations to their college managements to escalate the matter.

Another intern from Chalmeda Anand Rao Medical College in Karimnagar revealed that students receive just ₹2,000 as monthly stipend, and that too as a lumpsum after six months. “We are sent on compulsory field visits to rural health centres but are not allowed to use our personal vehicles. The college insists we use their bus and then deducts the transport charges from our stipend. So, for two to three months, we end up getting only ₹500 or ₹1,000 as stipend,” the intern said.

Fear of administrative backlash is silencing many students. “If someone raises their voice individually, they are threatened with academic retaliation, blocking logbooks or delaying internship completion. That could make us ineligible for NEET-PG, so most remain silent,” he added.

Another intern added that some colleges are allegedly hiding behind a 2003 government order that allowed colleges to collect a one-time ‘stipend fee’ of ₹5,000 per year. “They are using a two-decade-old GO to justify this exploitation, even though multiple new GOs and NMC directives have since superseded it,” the intern added.

The Hindu contacted both the private medical colleges for their comments on these charges, but there was no response.