The Health Minister has decided to suspend the registration of foreign medical graduates as doctors in the government health sector.

The decision was reached following protests by medical undergraduates of the five universities. Their campaign culminated with a demonstration opposite the Health Ministry on Tuesday demanding an immediate end to the intake of medical graduates who qualified in foreign universities alleging that some unqualified persons were registered as doctors.

"There are many unqualified persons in the health sector as doctors. Some Russian universities confer foreign students with the MBBS degree after completing only a six month course. They are not qualified as doctors. Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva too has admitted that there is a great danger in this process. He promised to halt this," President of the Medical Faculty Students Union of Colombo University, Kremlin Wickramasingha said.