‘Equal work, equal stipend’: Foreign medical graduates protest in Hyderabad demanding ₹29,792 per month

About 100 foreign medical graduates (FMGs) from various parts of Telangana gathered at Dharna Chowk in Hyderabad on Thursday (October 15, 2026) demanding that the government pay them stipends on a par with Indian medical graduates (IMGs) during their compulsory internship.

The protesters are seeking a monthly stipend of ₹29,792, which they said is paid to Indian medical interns in Telangana. They alleged that FMGs received only ₹5,000 a month at some government medical colleges, while several others had not been paid for months despite reporting for internship duties.

Manikanta, who is currently pursuing his internship at a medical college in Khammam, said he had completed his medical education in Ukraine and returned to India last year. After qualifying in the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) and completing the counselling process, he was allotted a college in Khammam, where he began his internship in January. “It has been about 10 months since I started my internship, but we have not received a stipend for any month so far,” he said.

The disparity in payments was a key focus of the protest, with demonstrators displaying posters comparing the stipend paid to FMG interns with the daily wages earned by labourers. One poster in Telugu highlighted how a daily-wage labourer could earn ₹500 to ₹700 a day, while an FMG intern receiving ₹5,000 a month earned the equivalent of about ₹166 a day. “This comparison reflects the financial difficulties faced by interns who are required to perform hospital duties despite receiving meagre or no remuneration,” said Sindhura.

For many FMGs, the financial burden does not end with completing their medical education abroad. The cost of studying medicine overseas runs into several lakhs of rupees, with some students and their families relying on education loans to fund the course. The stipend earned during the compulsory internship is an opportunity for these graduates to begin repaying those loans while meeting their day-to-day expenses.

Shashank, who completed his medical education in Georgia and is currently interning at Government Medical College (GMC), Nagarkurnool, said the protesters were seeking parity in stipend and the release of pending payments. “Our primary demand is a monthly stipend of ₹29,792, on a par with that paid to Indian medical interns. The government should also release all pending stipend arrears from January,” he said.

Among those supporting the protest was Syed, representing the Indian Medical Association’s Junior Doctors Network. “We all know the conditions in many medical colleges in district and tribal areas, where these doctors work despite limited facilities. Even while serving in such conditions and shouldering the same responsibilities, they do not receive the same remuneration as their Indian counterparts. We are trying to secure an appointment with the Health Minister to raise the issue and urge the government to issue a GO ensuring stipend parity,” he added.