In an order that will affect the future of thousands of those who aspire for nursing in Karnataka, the Karnataka High Court has barred the 379 nursing institutions, including 27 nursing colleges, in the state from making any admissions for the academic year 2007-08 due to lack of proper infrastructure.

A Division Bench comprising chief justice Cyriac Joseph and Justice BS Patil in an interim order directed the state nursing council and the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGHUS) to immediately withdraw permissions for admissions for the coming academic year till these institutions as per the norms set by the supervising authorities develop proper infrastructure. While the State Nursing Council controls 352 nursing schools, the RGHUS controls the 27 nursing colleges in the state.

Acting on a interest litigation (PIL) filed by the acting chairperson of the Kerala human rights commission Mohan Kumar, the court ordered that these institutions should not start admission procedures until they obtained recognition or approval from the nursing council and from the court.

The court also took objection to the fact that 352 nursing schools had obtained permission for admission from the state government and not from the State Nursing Council as mandated under the provisions of the Nursing Act. The court pulled up the state government for usurping the powers of the state nursing council and giving permission indiscriminately to scores of nursing institutions without verifying the infrastructure availability in these institutions.

The Kerala human rights commission in its petition had termed the current situation in the nursing institutions in Karnataka as unfortunate wherein a nursing institution is not competent to train midwives, nurses, auxiliary midwives and health inspectors. It said that though the state had no powers to grant approval, it had done so in respect of the 477 institutions. These permissions are illegal.

However, since the students have already taken permission, in these colleges, it did not ask to take any action against the admissions already made. It may be noted that a large number of students from Kerala seek admission in the nursing institutions in Karnataka.

Meanwhile, the high court had barred 98 nursing institutions from making admission last year on similar grounds. Acting on high court directive, the RGHUS had issued show cause notices to 27 nursing colleges and later informed why action, including disaffiliation should not be initiated against them for not having the required infrastructure.