Hyderabad: In a disturbing trend, fake medical professionals in Telangana, previously booked for running illegal clinics, are found restarting their ‘businesses’ — often within months of them being shut down by authorities. At least two such cases have come to light since Telangana Medical Council (TGMC) started cracking down on quacks.In both instances, cops filed fresh FIRs following complaints from TGMC.The first case was reported from Vanasthalipuram. V Sridhar Rao, who was first booked in Nov 2024 for impersonating a doctor and running an unlicensed polyclinic — Sri Venkateshwara Medical and General Stores — resumed his illegal practice earlier in 2025. According to TGMC officials who had raided the place and shut down the facility alleged that Rao restarted the clinic under a new name: Sri Venkateshwara Clinic.“This came to light during our inspection in April 2025. He was running the facility with multiple beds and even prescribing allopathic injections, IV-fluids, and other drugs to patients. These injections can be detrimental if administered unsupervised,” said a TGMC member, who was part of the inspection team.Based on the council’s complaint, Vanasthalipuram police booked a second case against him under Section 318(4) and 319 (2) (cheating), Section 22 of the Telangana Medical Practitioners Registration (TMPR) Act (punishment for contravention), and Section 34,r/w 54 of the National Medical Commission (NMC) Act (ban to practise on unregistered medical practitioners).“We have filed a charge sheet in both cases and the cases are now before the Rangareddy court. We have also brought it to the notice of the judge that Rao is a repeat offender,” said an official from the Vanasthalipuram police station.Similarly, in the second case TGMC found an unqualified practitioner, G Suresh, running a clinic — Laxmi Clinic — in Mancherial. “Despite being booked under multiple sections for cheating and forgery, Suresh returned to his practice within three months under a new name, Laxmi First Aid Centre,” said a TGMC member who registered the complaint. He added: “Even after the second FIR in 2024, he continues to run a single bed facility and has even hired an unqualified nursing staff.“The second FIR against Suresh was filed under similar sections at the Mancherial town police station.‘Enforcement of Act a challenge’Incidentally, while as per the National Medical Commission (NMC) guidelines practising medicine without an MBBS degree — which amounts to quackery — is punishable by up to one year of imprisonment and a fine of Rs 5 lakh, the state rule is much more lenient. As per the TGMPR Act, such offenders face only three months in jail and a fine of Rs 500.Dr K Mahesh Kumar, chairman of TGMC, says this loophole is exploited by many fake doctors, and admits to enforcement of the state Act still being a challenge.“It is the responsibility of the DMHO (district medical and health officer) and district registration authority (DRA) to crack down on quacks, seal clinics and conduct regular follow ups to check whether they are practising again,” said Dr Kumar, adding, “We have been writing to them in this regard and sending FIR copies too. But no follow ups are being conducted. Few months ago, a DMHO sealed a quack’s clinic in Medchal but after four months the clinic reopened.“Since TGMC’s formation in 2024, the council has filed about 170 FIRs about quacks. Of these, charge sheets have been filed in 135 cases and trials are underway in 40. “But the problem is much deeper. Our estimate is there are around 55,000 quacks operating across Telangana, with nearly 75% concentrated in urban centres such as Hyderabad and its peripheries,” said a council memberDon’t have authority: DMHOAccording to health officials, lack of coordination among enforcement bodies is a concern. A senior DMHO, on condition of anonymity, claimed their department only intervenes in serious cases like illegal abortions or medical negligence. “We are not the regulatory authority for quackery,” said the official, claiming that the govt is, in fact, considering regularising quacks by issuing medical certificates. “There are about 3,000 to 4,000 such practitioners in every district. If the govt wants us to act, why wouldn’t we?” he said. The official also pointed to the gaps in public healthcare infrastructure, stating how these quacks often refer patients to hospitals and take commissions, acting as unofficial intermediaries. “Many of them are well-established in their localities. They are seen as accessible healthcare providers, especially in underserved areas.”QUOTEUnless a dedicated, autonomous body is created to deal with quackery and expedite legal proceedings, the situation will only worsen. We have only 19 members across the state for inspections, with most of them practising doctors themselves. Without systemic changes and strong political will, this menace will continue. — Dr K Mahesh Kumar, chairman, TGMCGFX: Cases where individuals were caught with fake MBBS certificates of real doctors— In March this year, an individual at Ankura hospital, Madinaguda was found practising with forged medical registration documents by the medical council. The accused, identified as Kalapala Bharat Kumar, edited the original certificate of a doctor by altering his name, address and other credentials. An FIR was registered at Miyapur police station. The hospital dismissed him immediately.— In Feb a govt doctor from Nizamabad medical college and TGMC filed two separate complaints against a man for allegedly running a clinic in Turkayamjal, Rangareddy using a forged MBBS degree of the govt doctor. Vanasthalipuram police filed an FIR against Chandrashekhar and initiated a probe— In a surprise inspection on Dec 31 2024, TGMC caught a person named V Rambabu for illegally running a hospital (Vijaya Hospital), in Kothur, Rangareddy. As per the council, Rambabu had illegally obtained a certificate from a qualified doctor and submitted it as a proof of registration to the DMHO. A case was registered at Kothur police stationAll these FIRs were registered under Sections 318 (cheating) and 319 (cheating by impersonating), 338 (forging documents) of BNS and other relevant sections of NMC and TMPR Act.