Fake 'councils' plaguing allied health sciences

Private bodies with official-sounding names in Delhi, UP and Haryana have been ‘affiliating’ allied health science institutes, ‘approving’ courses and offering diplomas and degrees, all illegally

- Shradha Chettri

The website of the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) shows that Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana are among 13 states and union territories that are yet to constitute State Allied and Healthcare Councils, mandated by the NCAHP Act 2021. However on the ground, there’s a rash of ‘councils’ providing ‘affiliation’ to institutes to run diploma and certificate courses for amounts ranging from Rs.10,000 to up to Rs.5 lakh.

An investigation by Careers360 has revealed that these private bodies - they call themselves ‘councils’ suggesting regulatory authority - operate even beyond their state borders. As long as the fees for affiliation is paid, courses are being run even with “non-attending” options. Under the guise of an owner seeking affiliation and approval for her institute, this reporter visited and/or spoke to ‘officials’ at several such ‘councils’ in Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Many of them claim legal sanction under various acts and bodies, often with nothing to do with healthcare IT Act, ministry of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME), ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship (MSDE), NITI Aayog. What Careers360 found on each of them is given below.

Experts say that the lack of regulation of this sector has fuelled the growth of such councils and that it is mostly rural institutes that are affiliated to them.

The commission's first chairperson Dr Yagna Unmesh Shukla, who took charge in January 2024, told Careers360 that the national commission at the centre and the state councils are the only statutory bodies in this field.

NCAHP Act on state councils

The NCAHP is the top regulator for the allied health sciences sector but it was set up only in 2021. Its regulations are still being framed and many state councils are yet to come up.