India Launches First Nationwide AI Training for Doctors With 42,000 Sign-Ups

Overview

• Union minister Anupriya Patel launched the online course developed by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences under the Health Ministry.
• The programme targets roughly 50,000 practitioners and has already drawn more than 42,000 registrations, with participation voluntary and not yet open to MBBS students.
• Over six months, 20 lectures cover clinical applications, diagnostics, decision support, hospital operations and future innovations such as genomics and data-driven medicine.
• Faculty includes experts from Harvard, Mayo Clinic, the University of London, Arizona State University and Indian Institutes of Technology, with the inaugural lecture delivered by Dr D Nageshwar Reddy.
• Officials stress that AI augments rather than replaces clinicians, supports a shift toward preventive care for NCDs and tuberculosis, and must be governed by accountability, accessibility and ethical use, with certificates awarded after assessments and plans to refine and possibly add speciality modules.