Telangana to Launch Aadhaar-Based Facial Attendance for Medical Staff from May 1
Hyderabad: The Telangana government is bringing a new system to check attendance for medical staff. Starting from May 1, staff must use an Aadhaar-based facial attendance system.
This rule will apply to workers in Primary Health Centres (PHCs), Urban Primary Health Centres (UPHCs), Basti Dawakhanas, and medical colleges across the State.
If doctors and staff do not follow the rules, they will face a loss of pay. The government wants everyone to be on duty from 9 am to 4 pm without fail.
Director of Public Health B Ravinder Nayak said Telangana has 638 PHCs, 248 UPHCs, and 468 Basti Dawakhanas. The goal is to offer better health services to poor and middle-class families.
Doctors must arrive on time and mark their attendance using facial recognition. Other staff members, like nurses and technicians, must also be present during working hours.
Dr. Ravinder Nayak added that salaries will now depend on proper attendance records. Staff must be available to serve patients on time.
This decision follows a directive from the National Medical Council (NMC). The NMC has asked all hospitals and medical colleges to use an app-based facial attendance system.
Recently, Health Minister C Damodar Raja Narsimha visited Gandhi Hospital. He was unhappy to find many doctors absent. He ordered the hospital superintendent to send show-cause notices to the missing doctors.
The Minister stressed the need for a strong attendance monitoring system to ensure all staff are present during duty hours.
Doctors must register their name, institution, district, and Aadhaar number in the mobile app. There will also be surprise checks to monitor attendance regularly.
Telangana has 34 government medical colleges and 28 private medical colleges. This attendance rule will apply to all of them.
Officials said the system will also use geo-tagging. This will help track the movements of doctors and faculty inside the institutions, making sure they stay at their workplaces.
