With the National Medical Commission (NMC) facing criticism for its new logo, which features a coloured image of Hindu god Dhanvantari, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on December 11 said that the image was already part of the logo and it had recently only been made colourful.
“The NMC logo with a black and white image [of Lord Dhanvantari] was adopted in 2022. Dhanvantari is a symbol of Indian medical science. We can take inspiration from our heritage and move forward. I think we should feel proud instead of questioning it,” said the Minister in the Rajya Sabha. “People should be proud of the new logo.”
During Zero Hour, Trinamool Congress MP Santanu Sen called for the old logo of the NMC to be restored, saying the new one “was against the Constitution”. “Change of logo was not needed. It’s symbolising one religion. What is the function of the NMC? It regulates medical curriculum; it gives sanction to new medical colleges. Its function is not to promote any particular religion… It’s against the basic oath which we, the doctors, take after passing MBBS, be it the Charak oath or Hippocratic oath. We take oath that we will treat each and every patient, irrespective of the caste, creed or religion,” Dr. Sen said.
The Indian Medical Association (IMA) had also earlier this month asked the NMC to restore its previous logo.
