Centre replaces Dental Council of India with National Dental Commission

The Centre has replaced the Dental Council of India with the National Dental Commission under the NDC Act, 2023. The reform introduces a National Exit Test for dental graduates and aims to regulate fees and modernise dental registration systems.

Hyderabad: In a landmark development in the field of dental education, the Central government has replaced the Dental Council of India with Dental Commission of India (DCI), effectively paving the way for new regulations for dental (BDS) students and overhaul of the State Dental Councils.

With National Dental Commission (NDC) Act, 2023 coming into effect, dental students who are currently in their final year should now prepare for a uniform National Exit Test (Dental), which serve as both the licentiate exam to practice and also the entrance for Post-Graduate Master in Dental Surgery (MDS) seats.

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Apart from this, according to reports, the NDC is expected to frame guidelines for fee regulation in 50 percent of seats in private dental colleges and deemed universities, potentially providing much-needed relief to students facing exorbitant tuition costs.

A Live National Register is also being planned, which will allow dental students, who completed their BDS in one state, to easily transfer their registration to other Indian States for practice. Such a move will also go a long way in cutting through a lot of red tape. Dentists will likely be required to keep their profiles updated on a digital portal, linking their state registration to a central national ID.

Under the newly implemented NDC Act, 2023, the existing state-level regulatory bodies now have a mandatory one-year deadline to reconstitute or risk losing their functional authority. State governments have been given until March 2027 to formally establish their new Councils.

Regarding the handling of grievances related to dental care, State Councils will continue to handle initial grievances. However, a new national-level appellate system will be established to ensure cases of medical negligence or ethical breaches are handled transparently.

Existing state dental councils will continue to process routine registrations and renewals till new bodies are formed.