National Dental Commission Bill introduced in Parliament during monsoon session 2023

The National Dental Commission Bill, 2023 was tabled in the Lok Sabha by Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Monday. The National Dental Commission, which will create policies and uphold high standards for dental education and the profession, will take the role of the Dental Council of India under the new bill.

The National Dental Commission Bill, 2023 has provisions similar to those in the National Medical Commission (NMC) Act 2019 about the chairman and members disclosing their assets publicly and the National Exit Test (Dental). Additionally, the new commission will control the costs for 50% of the seats in private dentistry institutions.

The new Bill seeks to “regulate the practise of dentistry in the nation, to offer high-quality, reasonably priced dental education, and to increase access to high-quality oral healthcare.” The goal of the bill is to bring the regulatory structure of the dentistry education profession up to speed with international norms.

According to the Bill, “The State Dental Council shall be established by the State within one year of the beginning of this Act.”

Composition of the National Dental Commission

The National Dental Commission will have its headquarters in New Delhi and have a chairperson, eight ex officio members, and 24 part-time members. The federal government will choose them.

The eight ex-officio members will include representatives from the National Medical Commission (NMC), the health ministry, and the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi.

A total of 19 of the 24 part-time members will be selected for a two-year term by rotation from among the nominees of the states and union territories.

Two dental faculty members from any central, state, or autonomous government institution will round out the remaining five members, who will be appointed for terms of four years.

The remaining three members will have specialised knowledge and professional experience in management, law, medical ethics, health research, consumer or patient rights advocacy, science, technology, and economics.

Bill claims that members of the commission must disclose all of their professional and business obligations, as well as their assets and liabilities, when they take office and leave it.

Dental Commission: Independent bodies

• Undergraduate and Postgraduate Dental Education Board
• Dental Assessment and Rating Board
• Ethics and Dental Registration Board
• The Undergraduate and Postgraduate Dental Education Board will establish criteria for institutions and standards for dental education.
• The process for evaluating and grading dental institutions will be decided by the Dental Assessment and grading Board.

Additionally, it will examine dentistry schools and release the evaluation results and rankings. The board will also make decisions on degree de-recognition and withdrawal of recognition.

A live, online national registration for dentists will be maintained by the Ethics and Dental Registration Board. The president and board members will be chosen by the national government.

Admissions and the National Exit Test (Dental)

The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) is required for enrollment in dental institutions’ undergraduate Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) programmes. NEET-MDS will be used for admissions to Master of Dental Surgery (MDS) postgraduate programmes until the National Exit Test (Dental) is operational.

The commission will handle the common counselling for all seats across India through a designated agency, while the state government’s designated body would handle the common counselling for the seats at the state level.

In order to give licences to practise dentistry as dentists and to enrol in the state register or the national register, designated authorities will hold what will be known as the “National Exit Test (Dental),” which will be administered by the commission.

Admission to postgraduate dental education programmes in dental institutions will be based on the results of the exit examination. “The National Exit Test (Dental) shall become operational on such date, within three years from the date of commencement of this Act, as may be appointed by the Central Government, by notification,” the Bill states.

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