Section 21 of The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021
- (1)The Central Government shall, on the recommendation of a Search-cum-Selection Committee, appoint the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and the Secretary of the Commission.
- (2)The Search-cum-Selection Committee shall consist of the following persons, namely:—
- (a)the Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare-Chairperson;
- (b)the Secretary or his nominee, not below the rank of Additional Secretary of Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education-member;
- (c)four experts, possessing outstanding qualifications and experience of not less than twenty-five years in the field of allied and healthcare education, public health education and health research to be nominated by the Central Government-members;
- (d)one person, possessing outstanding qualifications and experience of not less than twenty-five years in the field of management or law or economics or science and technology to be nominated by the Central Government-member; and
- (e)Additional Secretary to the Government of India in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Convener-member.
- (3)The Central Government shall, within a period of three months from the date of occurrence of any vacancy, including by reason of death, resignation or removal of the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson or Secretary of the Commission or within three months before the end of tenure of the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson or Secretary of the Commission, make a reference to the Search-cum-Selection Committee for selection of Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson or Secretary.
- (4)The Search-cum-Selection Committee shall recommend a panel of at least three names for each vacancy.
- (5)The Search-cum-Selection Committee shall, before recommending any person for appointment of the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson or Secretary, satisfy itself that such person does not have any financial or other interest which is likely to affect prejudicially his functions as such Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson or Secretary.
- (6)No appointment of the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson or Secretary of the Commission shall be invalid merely by reason of any vacancy or absence of a member in the Search-cum-Selection Committee.
- (7)Subject to the provisions of sub-sections (3) to (6), the Search-cum-Selection Committee may regulate its own procedure.
Summary
- The Central Government uses a Search-cum-Selection Committee to find and recommend people to be the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, and Secretary of the Commission.
- The Committee is chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and includes other experts in health education, management, law, economics, or science.
- When a vacancy occurs, or three months before a term ends naturally, the Central Government has three months to ask this Committee to find replacements.
- The Committee must suggest a panel of at least three names for every open position.
- Before recommending anyone, the Committee has to make sure the candidate does not have any financial or other interests that would negatively affect their work on the Commission.
- If a member of the Committee is absent or there is an empty seat on the Committee, it does not invalidate their final selection.
Practical examples
FAQ
1. Who decides exactly who gets to be the Chairperson of the Commission?
The Central Government officially makes the appointment, but they must do so based on the recommendations of the Search-cum-Selection Committee.
2. How many choices does the Committee give the government for one open job?
The Committee must recommend a panel of at least three different names for each single vacancy.
3. What happens if one of the experts on the Selection Committee is sick and misses the meeting where they pick candidates?
The selections are still valid. The Act states that no appointment is invalid just because a member was absent from the Committee.
4. How much experience do the health experts on the Committee need to have?
The four health experts nominated by the Central Government must possess an outstanding qualification and at least twenty-five years of experience in allied and healthcare education, public health education, or health research.
Test yourself
Q1.Under Section 21 of The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021, what is the minimum number of names the Search-cum-Selection Committee must recommend for a single vacancy?
Q2.Under Section 21 of The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021, when a vacancy occurs due to the resignation of the Chairperson, what is the time limit for the Central Government to refer the matter to the Search-cum-Selection Committee?
Q3.Under Section 21 of The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021, what must the Committee verify before recommending a person for the role of Secretary?
Q4.Under Section 21 of The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Act, 2021, what effect does the absence of a committee member have on the appointment of the Vice-Chairperson?