New Delhi The Indian Medical Association (IMA), the nation’s largest representative body of allopathic doctors, today expressed strong opposition to the Union Government’s recent directive to register and grant practice rights to homeopathic practitioners for allopathic treatment without adequate training. The IMA has announced a nationwide strike, effective immediately, to protest what it calls an alarming case of “mixopathy” threatening public health standards.

Key Concerns Raised by IMA

1.Insufficient Training: Homeopathic practitioners are being allowed to prescribe allopathic medicines or perform surgical roles after minimal bridge courses. IMA emphasizes this is grossly inadequate compared to the full five-and-a-half-year MBBS training

2. Patient Safety at Risk: Untrained practitioners prescribing powerful modern medicines can lead to misdiagnosis, drug side-effects, and legal liability. Supreme Court rulings have recognized prescribing allopathic drugs without proper qualification as medical negligence

3. Systemic Encroachment: IMA warns that allowing cross-system practice blurs lines between distinct medical systems, destabilizing India’s pluralistic health ecosystem. In Karnataka, doctors’ hunger strikes called the policy a deceptive “khichadification” of medicine

4. Legal Ambiguity: The move undermines recent Supreme Court and high court interventions that have reminded that such practice without proper qualification is unlawful  IMA plans immediate legal challenges.

Call to Action: Nationwide Strike

Type: Idle protest and symbolic strike
Coverage: All outpatient departments, consultation services, and non-emergency hospital services
Duration: Open-ended, until the policy is rescinded

Emergency and critical care services will continue under government supervision to maintain public safety.

IMO’s Past Precedents & Credibility

In 2022, IMA organized a relay hunger strike against allowing homeopathic doctors to prescribe allopathic medicines in Maharashtra
In early 2021, Karnataka chapter staged a hunger strike opposing extension of surgical powers to AYUSH practitioners
Nationwide protests during the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill debates also highlighted IMA’s long-standing objection to “bridge courses”

IMA Demands

| Demand No. | Action Requested |
| ———- | ——————————————————————————————————————————————— |
| 1 | Immediate withdrawal of the registration order allowing homeopathic practitioners to prescribe allopathic medicines or perform surgeries. |
| 2 | Strict enforcement of qualification standards aligned with MBBS-level medical education and regulatory oversight. |
| 3 | Judicial review of any policy enabling mixopathy, with safeguards to uphold public safety and medical integrity. |
| 4 | Clear demarcation between medical systems, maintaining distinct professional boundaries. |

Spokesperson Statement

“This is not just a policy blunder—it is a dangerous experimentation with public health,” said Dr. R. V. Asokan, National President of IMA. “A one-year certificate course cannot equip someone to manage severe infections, critical emergencies, or surgical complications. We refuse to gamble with patients’ lives.”

Public Safety Assurance

Emergency services—including ICU care, surgeries, accident and trauma treatment—will remain active across government hospitals under emergency provisions.
Urgent healthcare needs will be escalated to government-run institutions.