The Medical Council of India (MCI) has amended its anti-ragging regulations vide a notification No. MCI-34(1)/2017-Med./182799 dated 28^th March this year - Medical Council of India (Prevention and Prohibition of Ragging in Medical Colleges/Institutions) (Amendment) Regulations, 2018 - by adding the following in Clause 3 under the heading “Definitions:- for the purpose of these Regulations”, the following shall be added after first para of sub-clause 3.3.

“Any act of physical or mental abuse (including bullying and exclusion) targeted at another student (fresher or otherwise) on the ground of colour, race, religion, caste, ethnicity, gender (including transgender), sexual orientation, appearance, nationality, regional origins, linguistic identity, place of birth, place of residence or economic background.”

1. ‘Colour’ means pigmentation of skin, which can be indicative of the person’s race or complexion e.g. white, brown or black skin
2. ‘Race’ means a group of people who share some inherited physical features, such as stature, skin color and facial features e.g. Caucasian, Negroid, Mongoloid
3. ‘Religion’ means a particular system of faith and worship e.g. Hinduism, Islam, Christianity
4. ‘Caste’ means division or class of society based on wealth, rank, or occupation e.g. Brahmins, kshatriyas, farmers, traders, artisans, merchants,
5. ‘Ethnicity’ means group of people with shared social, cultural and historical values and behaviors e.g. Dravidians, Aryans, Hispanic  
6. ‘Gender (including transgender)’ means male, female or the third gender
7. ‘Sexual orientation’ means preference of a person with respect to heterosexual, homosexual, and bisexual behavior
8. ‘Appearance’ means outward form as perceived visually
9. ‘Nationality’ means belonging to a particular nation by origin, birth, or naturalization e.g. Indian, Canadian, German, Italian
10. ‘Regional origins’ mean a person belonging to a large geographic region e.g. South India, Northeast India or a particular region e.g. Purvanchal
11. ‘Linguistic identity’ means the distinct ‘accent’ way a language that belongs to a particular culture is spoken e.g. Marathi, Bangla, Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil.
12. ‘Place of birth’ means the place where a person was born
13. ‘Place of residence’ means the place, especially the house, where a person lives or resides
14. ‘Economic background’ means position or standing of a person based on income

Dr KK Aggarwal

Padma Shri Awardee

Vice President CMAAO

Group Editor-in-Chief IJCP Publications

President Heart Care Foundation of India

Immediate Past National President IMA