JANET.J Vs. KERALA NURSES AND MIDWIVES COUNCIL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Ext.P18 communication, in terms of which the second respondent, the Registrar of the Kerala Nurses and Midwives Council (the Council) has informed the petitioner the decision of the Council to decline the request made by the petitioner for registration of the additional qualifications secured by her in the Register maintained under the Nurses and Midwives Act, 1953 (the Act), is under challenge in the writ petition.

(2.) The relevant facts are the following: The petitioner obtained Diploma in General Nursing and Midwifery from the Government School of Nursing, Palghat, during February 1993. Ext.P1 is the diploma certificate of the petitioner. On the strength of the said Diploma, the petitioner has applied for and obtained registration under the Act to practice as a nurse and midwife. Ext.P2 is the certificate of registration of the petitioner under the Act. Later, the petitioner joined for the Post Basic B.Sc. Nursing Course at M.V. Shetty College of Nursing, Manglore, affiliated to the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, Karnataka and obtained the Post Basic B.Sc. Nursing Degree from the said University. Ext.P3 is the degree certificate of the petitioner. On the strength of Exts.P1 and P3 certificates, the petitioner has obtained registration to practice as a nurse and midwife under the Karnataka Nurses, Midwives and Health Visitors Act, 1961 also. Exts.P4 and P5 certificates evidence the said fact. Later, the petitioner joined for the Masters Degree in Nursing at Sri Ramakrishna Institute of Paramedical Sciences, Coimbatore, affiliated to the Tamil Nadu Dr.M.G.R.Medical University, Chennai and obtained Masters Degree in Nursing in the branch of Community Health Nursing. Ext.P6 is the Masters Degree certificate of the petitioner. Earlier, the petitioner got herself registered to practice as a nurse and midwife on the strength of Exts.P1 and P3 certificates under the Tamil Nadu Nurses and Midwives Act, 1926 also and after obtaining the Msc. degree, the petitioner got the said additional qualification also recorded in the Register under the Tamil Nadu Nurses and Midwives Act, 1926. Ext.P7 is the certificate issued by the Tamil Nadu Nurses and Midwives Council to the petitioner in this connection. The petitioner, thereafter, obtained Ph.D in Paediatric Nursing from the Tamil Nadu Dr.M.G.R. Medical University. Ext.P9 is the certificate of declaration of the Ph.D of the petitioner in Paediatric Nursing made by the Tamil Nadu Dr.M.G.R.Medical University, Chennai. The petitioner is presently stationed in Kerala. The case of the petitioner is that the Indian Nursing Council has now decided to issue a unique identification number and card for the nurses in the State on the basis of their registration under the Council. In order to get the qualifications of the petitioner included in the identity card, it was necessary for the petitioner to get the additional qualifications secured by her after the registration also, recorded in the Register maintained by the Council. The petitioner, therefore, applied to the Council for inclusion of her Post Basic B.Sc. degree in Nursing, Masters Degree in Nursing as also the Ph.D degree in Paedeatric Nursing recorded in the Register maintained by the Council. Ext.P16 series are the applications preferred by the petitioner before the Council in this connection. Ext.P16 series applications now stand rejected by the first respondent. As noted, Ext.P18 is the communication issued by the second respondent in this connection and the petitioner is aggrieved by the said decision of the Council.

(3.) A counter affidavit has been filed by the second respondent on behalf of the Council. The stand taken by the Council in the counter affidavit is that the petitioner has completed the Post Basic Degree in Nursing during her tenure of appointment in the service of the State Government without availing leave and the petitioner is, therefore, not entitled to get the said qualification as also the qualifications acquired thereafter based on the said qualification recorded in the Register maintained by the Council. In order to substantiate the said stand, it was stated in the counter affidavit that the applicants, for the purpose aforesaid, are required in terms of the guidelines framed by the Council to produce the course certificate along with the application for registration and the course certificate produced by the petitioner for the said purpose, namely R1(b) revealed that the course period was from 06.07.1996 to 17.11.1998 and that in the meanwhile, the petitioner was appointed provisionally as a Staff Nurse in the State service and she joined in the State service on 10.07.1998. Ext.R1(c) proceedings of the District Medical Officer of Health, Manjeri was produced by the Council to substantiate their stand that the petitioner joined duty in the State service on 10.07.1998. In short, the stand of the Council is that since the petitioner was pursuing the course for about four months without availing leave, the petitioner is not entitled to get her additional qualifications recorded in the Register.