'Principals Quit': Leadership Crisis Leaves GMC Doda Headless Amid MBBS Admissions
Government Medical College Doda faces a leadership crisis as three principals have resigned in five years to avoid working outside Jammu, reports Amir Tantray
By ETV Bharat Jammu & Kashmir Team
Published : September 2, 2026 at 2:34 PM IST
Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir’s prestigious institution, Government Medical College (GMC) Doda, is facing a bizarre leadership crisis. Senior doctors would rather resign than work away from Jammu. In eight years, the college saw six principals, and three quit prematurely.
The medical college’s leadership timeline reveals the instability of administrators. Founding principal Dr Tariq Azad took charge on July 6, 2018, successfully completing his tenure on August 31, 2020. His successor, Dr Dinesh Kumar, assumed office the next day but resigned prematurely exactly one year later.
After Dr Kumar, Dr Noor Ali then took the reins, serving until his scheduled retirement on January 31, 2023. But the instability returned with Dr Puja Vimesh, who stepped down prematurely on July 20, 2024, due to health issues. Following her, Dr Rakesh Bahl took charge and served from July 22, 2024, until his superannuation on January 31, 2026.
Again, the crisis peaked for the GMC this year when Dr Dev Raj Dogra, appointed on March 11, 2026, suddenly walked out after applying for voluntary retirement barely two months later.
GMC Doda is among seven new medical colleges established in Jammu and Kashmir since 2014. Five were launched during the final term of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led administration announced two more in 2019. The expansion split these institutes across both regions. Kashmir received three colleges in Anantnag, Baramulla, and Handwara. Jammu gained four, located in Doda, Kathua, Rajouri, and Udhampur.
Unlike their urban counterparts, remote institutes like GMC Doda and GMC Rajouri bear the brunt of this administrative crisis and mismanagement, which severely hampers daily operations and college growth.
Officials of the Health and Medical Education Department and senior doctors of GMC Jammu told ETV Bharat that the majority of the senior professors in GMC Jammu are not willing to head any of these four institutes.
“The main issue with the medical colleges of Doda, Rajouri and Udhampur is that senior professors don’t want to leave their clinical practice in Jammu or stay away from their families,” said a senior official, wishing anonymity. “When the government orders appointment of any of the professors to far-off GMCs, they either don’t spend time in the medical colleges or apply for Volunteer Retirement Service (VRS).”
The latest fallout happened at GMC Doda. Appointed on March 11, Dr Dogra applied for voluntary retirement less than two months later in May.
“Three months passed without any word from the government as his request was neither accepted nor rejected,” an official explained. “Under standard service rules, if the administration fails to respond within the stipulated three-month window, the VRS is legally deemed accepted,” he added.
The medical college currently operates with no principal as Dr Dogra exited without handing over his charge to any successor. This administrative vacuum threatens the college’s academic calendar just as the fresh MBBS admission cycle has already started.
An official said that crucial enrollment data must be submitted to the Board of Professional Entrance Examination (BOPEE) to trigger the second round of counselling for waitlisted candidates. While this high-stakes process strictly requires personal monitoring by a principal, GMC Doda is currently being run entirely by clerks.
ETV Bharat contacted Dr Dogra, but he refused to comment on the issue.
The other three GMCs in remote areas of Jammu, at the moment, have principals available, but one of the three principals was reluctant to join the post.
GMC Jammu is currently the feeding institute for all four GMCs of the Jammu region, as the faculty of all the medical colleges are still at the assistant or associate professor levels, and it will take them more time to reach the level where principals could be appointed from within the GMC.
“It was due to the pressure from the government and fear of losing the highly paid job that he joined,” said another official, who is privy to the development.
Under established service rules, only a senior doctor with five years of experience as a professor qualifies to become a principal. The Union Territory (UT) government remains rigid, refusing to bend these eligibility criteria to fill the vacancies.
“A few junior professors are willing to take up the principal’s role on a full-time basis. However, the government is reluctant to promote them out of turn and bypass seniority rules,” said the official.
Moreover, after Dr Dogra’s exit from GMC Doda, the government may again be appointing a senior professor of GMC Jammu against the post, but few of the senior doctors, as per sources, have kept their VRS ready if they are sent away from GMC Jammu.
“It is not that they don’t want to be principals but only for GMC Jammu and nowhere else,” he added.
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