Over 500 fake doctors identified in K'taka in 2 years

Bengaluru: The Karnataka Health Department has identified as many as 582 fake doctors in the state since 2024, data shows, even as the department has constituted a special investigation team to probe fake drug rackets.The crackdown on fake doctors intensified in 2025 after the high court pulled up the government over the lack of adequate action against quacks.Data shows that a majority of the cases were reported from rural areas, with Kalaburagi (127 cases) topping the list followed by Raichur (124 cases) and Dharwad (75 cases).According to sources, many assistants, ward boys and nurses who would have closely observed doctors tend to open clinics in remote rural areas.”Many of them would have observed and learnt a few medical details after working with doctors for years and when they set up a clinic in some rural areas, it is easy for them to make people believe,” a senior official in the health department said.While the cases are higher in rural areas, enforcement might be lagging in urban areas. “In cities like Bengaluru, there are so many clinics, and the department may not have enough resources to check on each of them. Hence, the number of fake doctors identified in bigger cities may be lower,” said a senior official who did not want to be named.Bengaluru: Conman used proximity to mutt to cheat doctor in Rs 2.7-cr fake land deal, says charge sheetOfficials have observed several categories of fake doctors — many of them were not qualified, a few others were qualified but not registered under the Karnataka Private Medical Establishments (KPME) Act, and a few others were qualified as doctors through other degrees like Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery (BAMS) or Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) but did not disclose it to patients and instead practiced like an allopathy doctor. Health and Family Welfare Minister U T Khader told DH that the department was now preparing an action plan to intensify crackdown on such clinics.”I have asked officials to prepare a report with the details of such establishments at taluk level. We will prepare an action plan and implement it soon. We will also hold discussions with the police department and seek their support to intensify the crackdown,” Khader said.After 582 fake doctors were identified, the 582 clinics run by them have been shut down. A fine has been imposed on 87 of the fake doctors while judicial proceedings are underway against 29 others.Experts, however, opined that there is a need to strengthen government healthcare infrastructure to ensure that people have access to medical facilities and this will in turn curb operation of such fake doctors. “We have also received such feedback. We are expanding our network and we are reaching the remote corners as well,” another health department official said.

Source: Deccan Herald