Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to amend the Odisha Medical & Health Services (Method of Recruitment and Conditions of Service) Rules, 2017. This amendment aims to regulate the recruitment, promotion, and service conditions of Medical Officers in the Odisha Medical and Health Services (OMHS) Cadre.
Following this decision, the government will send a requisition to the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) for the recruitment of more than 5,000 Group-A (Junior Branch) Medical Officers to address the healthcare needs of the state.
The amendment comes in the wake of the restructuring of the OMHS Cadre as outlined in the Health and Family Welfare Department resolutions issued earlier this year.
Key changes include the creation of new posts, an increase in Super Time Pay Grade and Senior Administrative Grade posts, and the abolition of Selection Grade-I posts.
The revised structure aims to enhance promotional opportunities within the cadre and attract more specialists to provide specialized healthcare at the District Headquarters Hospitals (DHH), Sub-Divisional Hospitals (SDH), and Community Health Centre (CHC) levels.
One of the major highlights of the amendment is the provision of additional weightage for candidates with higher qualifications. Medical Officers with recognized Post Graduate Degrees will receive three advance annual increments, while those with recognized Super Specialization Degrees will receive five increments in the Group-A (Junior Branch) pay scale from their date of joining.
The amendments also streamline the recruitment process to ensure the selection of meritorious and deserving candidates through a uniform and fair procedure based on marks secured in a test conducted by the Commission. Additionally, eligibility criteria for promotions to higher grades have been fixed to ensure career progression for Medical Officers.
The revised rules are expected to fill specialist posts at various levels, addressing the long-standing challenge of staffing CHCs with the requisite four specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pediatrics, Medicine, and Surgery.
