THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE N.V. RAMANA WRIT PETITION No.27244 of 2006 ORDER: The petitioner - Malladi Satyanarayana Educational Society represented by its Secretary and Correspondent – Sri M. Satyanarayana, having immense experience in running educational institutions especially nursing training schools, intended to establish a Nursing School by name R.V. School of Nursing at Mummidivaram, East Godavari District. After obtaining necessary infrastructure and approval, the petitioner made an application on 07.12.2004 for permission to start an institution to admit sixty students, accompanied by the required demand draft for Rs.5,000/- and specific details of infrastructure etc., Thereafter, the respondents deputed a team for verification and the application was found to be satisfactory. In spite of the same, the respondents failed to give licence to the petitioner to establish nursing school. It is stated that till August, 2006, the policy decision of the Government is to accord permission for starting nursing schools and it is only after issuing G.O.Ms.No.306 dated 01.08.2006, the Government took a new policy decision that thereafter they will not give permission for starting new nursing schools i.e., from the year 2006-2007. However, the respondents refused to grant essentiality certificate/permission to the petitioner to establish nursing school and returned the demand draft of Rs.5,000/-, accompanied by a letter referring to G.O.No.321 dated 05.08.2006. The grievance of the petitioner is that the action of the respondents in refusing to grant permission to establish nursing school is against the policy existing as on the date of their application i.e., 07.12.2004. The respondents filed a counter-affidavit and additional counter- affidavit, wherein it is inter alia stated that the Indian Nursing Council, vide letter dated 28.02.2001, resolved that from the year 2005 it will not consider any proposal for opening of new General Nursing and Midwifery Schools and will workout a strategy so that by 2010 all the schools of nursing will be converted into colleges of nursing; that again, vide letter dated 23.11.2005, the Indian Nursing Council reiterated its stand to upgrade schools of nursing to colleges of nursing; that in tune with the policy of the Indian Nursing Council and with a view to safeguard the high standards of nursing education, the Government of Andhra Pradesh has also taken a policy decision not to grant essentiality certificate any more for establishment of schools of nursing and to upgrade all the existing schools of nursing to colleges of nursing by issuing G.O.Ms.No.164 dated 23.05.2005 and on the same day, it also issued G.O.Ms.No.165 affirming that no essentiality certificates/permissions for establishment of schools of nursing will be issued from the academic year 2006-2007 onwards and that in pursuance of the said G.Os., in November, 2005, the Government of Andhra Pradesh issued a notification calling for applications for establishment of colleges of nursing. It is further stated that again on 05.08.2006, the Government of Andhra Pradesh issued G.O.Ms.No.321 deciding to consolidate and expand the colleges of nursing and to upgrade the existing schools of nursing to that of colleges of nursing in conformity with the policy. It is also stated that in the event of State Government is desirous of according permissions for establishment of nursing schools/colleges, it will issue a notification calling for proposals for establishment of schools/colleges of nursing; that in the year 2004-2005 the Government of Andhra Pradesh has not issued any such notification, but still the petitioner and many others have submitted proposals for establishment of schools/colleges of nursing and that unless there being a corresponding notification issued, the State Government is not under obligation to process such applications. The learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that in view of the fact that the Andhra Pradesh Para Medical Board Act, 38 of 2006 (for short ‘the Act’) is given retrospective effect from 01.08.2006, the orders of the Government in G.O.No.321 dated 05.08.2006 are redundant. The learned Government Pleader for Medical Health and Family Welfare submitted that the Act has no application to the case on hand since it relates to paramedical courses but not nursing courses. Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner and the learned Government Pleader for Medical Health and Family Welfare appearing for the respondents. The petitioner admittedly made application dated 07.12.2004 to grant permission for establishment of nursing school without there being any notification issued by the respondents. Much before the petitioner made application, in the year 2001, the Indian Nursing Council resolved that from the year 2005, it will not consider any proposal or grant permission for opening of new General Nursing and Midwifery Schools, and will workout a strategy so that by 2010 all the schools of nursing will be converted into colleges of nursing. The Indian Nursing Council, which is the apex body, governing the regulation of nursing education in the country, has taken a policy decision, to slowly phase out the existing nursing schools by converting them into nursing colleges over a period of time and further not to grant any permission to open new nursing schools. In tune with the policy decision taken by the Indian Nursing Council, and maintain the nursing standards in the State, the Government of Andhra Pradesh, has issued orders in G.O.Ms.No.164 dated 23.05.2005, whereunder they have taken a policy decision not to grant any essentiality certificate for establishment of any new nursing schools and further to upgrade the existing schools of nursing to that of colleges of nursing. As noticed above, even prior to the petitioner submitting application for grant of permission to start nursing school, the Indian Nursing Council in the year 2001 has taken a policy decision not to allow new nursing schools to come up and convert the existing nursing schools into nursing colleges from 2005. No doubt, after the petitioner submitting application for grant of permission to start new nursing school, the Government in tune with the policy decision taken by the Indian Nursing Council, has changed its policy decision, but that by itself cannot be a ground to consider the application of the petitioner, for grant of permission to open new nursing school, because it is the case of the respondents that the petitioner made application without there being any corresponding notification. That being so, and having regard to the change in policy, governing the nursing education, which seeks to impart nursing education only through colleges and not schools, no relief as prayed for by the petitioner can be granted. Hence, there is no merit in the writ petition, and the same is accordingly dismissed. No costs. _______________________ N.V. RAMANA, J 27th July, 2010 GHN