The National Medical Commission (NMC) has officially exempted certain categories of medical faculty from the mandatory Basic Course in Medical Education (BCME), according to the recently notified Medical Institutions (Qualifications of Faculty) Regulations, 2025, published in the Gazette on June 30.
As per the new rules, faculty working in super-speciality departments don’t need BCME at appointment. Faculty in broad specialties outside the MBBS curriculum also don’t need BCME at appointment. Faculty serving at Institutes of National Importance (INIs) don’t need BCME at appointment either. However, faculty in INIs must complete the course within two years. This applies if they join a recognised medical college.
This clarification follows previous NMC deliberations about a faculty member from AIIMS Gorakhpur.
The faculty member challenged recruitment rules at Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Institute of Medical Sciences (RMLIMS).RMLIMS denied the faculty member eligibility for a professor’s post.They lacked BCME or Basic Course in Biomedical Research (BCBR) certificates. The Allahabad High Court did not grant relief due to the application window closing.However, it allowed the faculty member to submit a representation to the NMC.
NMC’s appeal committee, headed by Dr. B N Gangadhar along with Dr. M K Ramesh and Dr. Vijaya Laxmi Nag, reviewed the matter. They referred to the Teachers Eligibility Qualifications in Medical Institutions Regulations, 2022, which require faculty seeking promotion to Associate Professor or Professor to complete both BCME and BCBR from NMC-designated institutions.
Nonetheless, the committee noted previous NMC communications dated March 20 and April 1, 2025. These communications had already offered flexibility. They stated that faculty appointed under urgent circumstances in GMCs could finish BCME training later. Faculty could complete the required BCME training during the following academic year. In such cases, faculty must finish training before applications open for 2026–2027. Applications will likely open around October 2025.
Significantly, the NMC reaffirmed that the BCME course is neither available to nor compulsory for faculty working at INIs, as these institutions are outside the NMC’s regulatory scope.
In its April 1, 2025 guidance, the NMC stated that medical college faculty must complete BCME to qualify for promotions. However, it also allowed flexibility for late appointments if the Principal Secretary of the respective State or UT submits an affidavit confirming that the faculty will complete the training in the following academic year.
With the latest regulations, NMC has formally codified these exemptions, providing clarity and easing compliance requirements for faculty in super-specialties and INIs.
