The Kerala High Court has ruled that the State government cannot charge internship fees from Foreign Medical Graduates (FMGs) undergoing mandatory training in government medical colleges. Justice Devan Ramachandran, delivering the judgment, emphasized that FMGs contribute meaningfully to patient care and hospital operations during their internship, and thus it is unjust to impose financial burdens on them. The decision came after multiple petitions challenged the State’s policy of charging fees for the compulsory rotatory internship required post-FMGE clearance. The Court further noted that such interns offer valuable services to institutions and should not be treated differently from Indian medical graduates. The ruling is expected to benefit hundreds of returning Indian students with foreign medical degrees and underscores the judiciary’s commitment to fairness in the country’s public healthcare training framework.
