Mumbai News: Over 9,000 Homoeopathic Doctors To Launch Hunger Strike At Azad Maidan On July 16 Over CCMP Registration Suspension

Mumbai: More than 9,000 homoeopathic doctors in Maharashtra, all qualified under the Certificate Course in Modern Pharmacology (CCMP), will begin a hunger strike at Azad Maidan from July 16 to protest the state government’s sudden suspension of their registrations. They will be joined by over 90,000 homoeopathic doctors, teachers, and students from medical colleges across the state.

The Maharashtra government halted the registration process on July 11, after the Indian Medical Association (IMA) raised concerns over patient safety and the issue of cross-pathy, where one system of medicine prescribes another.

Following this, the Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) withdrew its earlier notification dated June 30, which had permitted CCMP-certified doctors to register and practise modern medicine in defined settings. The MMC stated that no new registrations under the programme will be processed until further notice.

To address the matter, the government has formed a study committee of experts from both allopathy and homoeopathy and given it two months to submit its findings.

However, protesting doctors have expressed strong reservations about the fairness of this panel, claiming it has only one BHMS representative among seven members, despite the direct impact on the homoeopathic community.

A meeting of various homoeopathy associations was held on July 13 in Vashi, Navi Mumbai, where organisations at taluka, district, and state levels decided to form a single, united front.

Dr Azaz Ahmed Khan, a practising BHMS doctor holding a CCMP certificate, said that from July 16, clinics across Maharashtra will shut down and principals, teachers, students and resident medical officers will gather at Azad Maidan. He added that Dr Bahubali Shah, the government-appointed administrator of the Homoeopathic Council, will lead an indefinite hunger strike.

Organisers have appealed to all homoeopathic doctors to close their clinics and remain in Mumbai for at least three to four days as a show of unity and determination. They insist that the sudden suspension is unfair and undermines a programme backed by amendments to multiple State Acts and recognised by the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) as well as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Protesting doctors are demanding immediate reinstatement of their registrations, withdrawal of the suspension orders issued by the Medical Education and Drugs Department and the FDA, and greater representation of BHMS doctors in any future review panels.

They also want the government to acknowledge their role in providing essential healthcare in rural, tribal and underserved areas, where qualified CCMP practitioners often fill gaps in access to modern medical care.

Protest leaders have urged lawmakers to raise the issue in the Monsoon Assembly Session and have called on public representatives to visit Azad Maidan between July 16 and 18.

“This is not a demand for parity with MBBS doctors,” Dr Khan said. “It is about protecting a legal right that ensures rural Maharashtra does not lose access to necessary medical services.”

The doctors have pledged to continue peaceful and legal protests until the registration process for CCMP-qualified practitioners is fully restored.