Medical College Scam: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently launched raids across 15 locations in 10 states after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) exposed a powerful nexus manipulating medical college inspections. The investigation found that government officials, private agents, university registrars, middlemen, and NMC assessors allegedly worked together to leak inspection details, arrange fake faculty, stage dummy patients, and accept bribes to help medical colleges secure favourable reports.
SRIMSR Raipur Emerges as the Core of the Inspection Scam
The Shri Rawatpura Sarkar Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (SRIMSR) in Raipur emerged as the main beneficiary of this network, as its management allegedly paid bribes to upgrade MBBS seats from 150 to 250.
The ED began its action after studying a detailed CBI chargesheet filed in August. The chargesheet described a well-structured corruption chain involving health ministry staff, NMC insiders, technology contractors, and college managements across several states.
Seven of the premises searched by the ED appeared earlier in the CBI FIR. The CBI named 12 accused, including SRIMSR chairman Ravi Shankar Ji Maharaj, who allegedly approved the bribe negotiations and instructed the team to prepare for inspection by arranging ghost faculty and fake patients.
How Officials Leaked Confidential NMC Assessment Data
Director Atul Kumar Tiwari managed the operational part of the scheme, including coordinating bribe payments and setting up a false environment for assessment. Registrar Mayur Raval from Geetanjali University allegedly acted as the primary source of leaked information, while Techinfy Solutions project head R. Randeep Nair allegedly accessed the NMC assessment module without authorisation to pull confidential data.
Join NEET News 2025 Three NMC assessors also allegedly accepted cash for favourable reports, leading to their arrest along with the other key accused.
According to the CBI, the nexus functioned by leaking inspection dates, assessor names, and internal status updates, information that the National Medical Commission (NMC) is supposed to keep confidential until the day of inspection.
The leak began when Tiwari contacted agents in Gujarat, who then reached out to Raval. Raval allegedly obtained information from Nair, who accessed restricted NMC systems using internal credentials.
He passed the details to Raval, who forwarded them to the SRIMSR management in exchange for money. This early access allowed the college to prepare extensively before the inspection team arrived.
Read Also: CBI Exposes Medical College Inspection Fraud: 34 Booked, Including NMC and Health Ministry Officials
College Management Staged Ghost Faculty and Fake Patients
Once the college received the leaked information, the management quickly created a fake setup. They brought in temporary faculty from outside and presented them as permanent staff. They also transported villagers from nearby areas and paid them ₹150 each to pose as patients in OPDs and wards.
The college modified its records to show higher patient flow and rearranged its facilities. Staff members were instructed on what to say during the inspection. These actions created a false impression of operational readiness and helped the college portray itself as compliant with NMC norms.
WhatsApp Messages Reveal Clear Bribe Negotiations
The CBI uncovered direct evidence of bribe negotiations through intercepted calls and WhatsApp chats. Agents initially demanded ₹50 lakh to reveal the inspection date 48 hours in advance and later quoted ₹2-3 lakh per seat to help clear approvals.
SRIMSR’s management considered the demand too high and negotiated the amount down to ₹30 lakh. Tiwari and Ravi Shankar discussed the payments openly over WhatsApp. The college eventually paid ₹55 lakh through hawala channels.
The CBI arrested an associate while he was carrying ₹16.62 lakh in his car and recovered another ₹38.38 lakh from a residence in Bengaluru.
A Timeline of How the Inspection Scam Unfolded
The investigation timeline shows how quickly the operation unfolded. On 22 May, Tiwari contacted middlemen in Gujarat. On 20 June, Raval informed him that the inspection would take place in the last week of June.
On 26 June, he confirmed the final date, 30 June, and shared the assessor’s names. Over the next two days, the college arranged ghost faculty and fake patients. The assessors visited the campus on 30 June and allegedly submitted a favourable report.
The CBI arrested the suspects in July, filed the chargesheet in August, and the ED conducted nationwide raids in November.
NMC’s Systemic Failure Enabled Large-Scale Manipulation
This scam reveals deep vulnerabilities in the NMC’s regulatory structure. Unauthorised users could access sensitive digital modules, and private IT contractors handled core systems without sufficient oversight.
Manual inspections created predictable patterns that colleges exploited by manipulating faculty lists, patient numbers, and infrastructure records. Assessors allegedly accepted bribes with ease, and the system lacked real-time verification tools to detect fraud.
These weaknesses allowed the nexus to operate smoothly across states.
Impact on Students, Doctors, and Public Health
The impact of this scam extends far beyond SRIMSR. Students receive poor-quality training when colleges fake compliance. Hospitals face the burden of underprepared interns who struggle with real medical cases. MBBS fees increase because colleges try to recover the bribe money from students.
The public loses trust in the NMC, and the credibility of India’s medical education system weakens significantly.
Why India Must Reform the Medical College Inspection System
India now needs urgent reform to prevent such scams in the future. The NMC must secure its digital systems and restrict access to authorised government officers only. It must modernise inspections using CCTV, biometric verification, and AI-based monitoring tools.
It must rotate assessors randomly and ensure that no one receives prior disclosure. Third-party audits must support inspection processes, and authorities must enforce strict penalties for inspection fraud. Without these changes, similar scams will continue to threaten the integrity of medical education in India.
The Rawatpura Case Shows a Broken Oversight Mechanism
The Rawatpura inspection scam exposes a deeply flawed regulatory system. Officials leaked data, agents collected money, assessors accepted bribes, and colleges staged false environments to cheat inspections.
The ED and CBI have acted decisively, but India must now strengthen its oversight mechanisms and rebuild trust in the institutions responsible for medical education. This case serves as a warning that systemic reforms cannot wait any longer.
