QPMPA India

QPMPA India

Memorandum, Rules & Byelaws approved by the CWC at its meeting held on 21 February 2010 at Kochi

As presented before the Extraordinary General Body Meeting
held at the IMA Hall, Kozhikode on 27 March 2010

Qualified Private Medical Practitioners’ Association
(QPMPA) INDIA

(Register No. ER-556/85 under Travancore-Cochin Literary, Scientific and Charitable Societies’ Act (Act 12 of 1955)

PREAMBLE

WHEREAS it is found necessary to provide uniform and high standard of medical care to the Public, and,

WHEREAS it is found necessary the private Sector Medical Service should be harnessed and managed in such a way, as it may play an equally important role as the Government Service in this field,

IT is found essential to bring all the practising members of the Medical Care System in the Private Sector under one organisational setup and to frame a constitution with a detailed Procedural Code, Rules and Regulations,

AND so such organisation be formed and shall hereinafter be called the QUALIFIED PRIVATE MEDICAL PRACTITIONERS’ ASSOCIATION, INDIA or simply as QPMPA INDIA.

This amended Constitution with the Rules and Regulations which go along with it shall come into force from the Twentyeighth (28th) day of March 2010 and shall cancel all the existing such code, and,

WE, the members of the said Organisation do hereby solemnly declare our allegiance to this constitution and take an oath to uphold the provisions of the same without any reservation, and within its purview, protect the interest of our Profession.

WE, on this day of 27 March 2010 hereby affix our signature as a mark of our approval and assent.

PART - I

Memorandum of Association

1. Name
The name of the Association shall be the Qualified Private Medical Practitioners’ Association, India, or simply to be referred as the QPMPA India.

2. Office

A permanent Office — Central Secretariat — shall be located at Kochi, Kerala. Shall be shifted to New Delhi if required, subject to availability of land and building. The Administrative activities shall be conducted where the elected National General Secretary resides if he/she is a nonresident of the area of the Central Secretariat. Apart from this, a liaison office and/or an officer shall be placed at New Delhi and all State Headquarters.

3. Jurisdiction

The activities of the Association shall be confined to the geographical borders of India including Union Territories.

4. Objects and Aims


a) To raise and maintain at high levels the ethical and professional standard of the Public Health-care System in Private Sector, and to improve the quality of Patient care.

b) To provide necessary teaching and training forum(s) to improve and to expand the knowledge of Medical profession, so as to provide access to the latest technological and scientific advancement and to keep the profession abreast of the modern trends.

c) To help and guide the management of the private sector medical services in matters of starting new clinics and health-care centres in areas where there is need for such as in underdeveloped and rural areas.

d) To take necessary steps and measures to protect the public from the growing menace of Quackery and the dangers that arises from it to public health and hygiene.

e) To protect the interest of the profession against uncalled-for harassment arising from different sources from time to time, and to provide the victimised members necessary legal and other means of protection.

f) To formulate a system of welfare scheme for the profession so that necessary succour (financial and/or other means) shall be given in case of unexpected and sudden mishaps, accidents, etc.

g) To take necessary measures to convince the Central and State Governments the necessity of forming a separate Directorate for the Private Sector Medical Care System at the Center and all States, similar to the Directorate for Medical Education and Public Health so that the interest of this sector may be safeguarded in all its aspects.

h) To establish schools, colleges and Postgraduate Institutions to start courses in paramedical sciences, nursing and medicine.

i) To start cooperative societies in all states to help improve health-care delivery and related activities.

PART - II
Constitution and General Rules


5. Formation


The QPMPA, India shall be formed by all qualified private medical practitioners of Modern Medicine and who are registered and who continue to be in the Register of the Indian Medical Council directly or through any of the State Medical Councils in India, and is practising in India.

6. Register


There shall be a Register, which shall be in the custody of the Central Office and which shall be the recognised official document of the list of active members of the QPMPA, and which shall be revised and be kept up-to-date from time to time as and when necessary.

7. Members


a) Eligibility:

i) Any person possessing a Medical Qualification(s) as defined in the Indian Medical Degree Act, 1916 (Act VII of 1916) and duly registered with the Indian Medical Council having his/her name currently in the Indian Medical Council Register, directly or through any of the State Medical Councils in India, and who are pursuing private Medical Practice in India, are eligible to join as members of QPMPA, and are eligible to be entered in the Register.

ii) Any person possessing a Dental Qualification (B.D.S./M.D.S.) and registered under the State Dental Council/Indian Dental Council and who is doing Private Practice shall be eligible to join as an Associate Member of QPMPA.

b) Classification:

i) Life Members: This refers to members who pay a lump sum in lieu of their annual subscription, which is governed by the byelaws laid down for this purpose from time to time.

ii) Branch Members: Persons enlisting themselves as members through a local branch as per byelaws shall be called Branch Members.

iii) Direct Members: Persons who are practising in an area where there is no recognised Local or State Branch can become members of the QPMPA directly as permissible. However, nobody is entitled to become direct members from an area where there exists a recognised functioning State/Local Branch.

iv) Associate Members: House Surgeons and Postgraduate students may enrol themselves as Associate members either through a Local/State Branch or directly.

v) Couple Members: If both the husband and wife are Medical practitioners in private sector and are eligible to become members as per byelaws, they both can enjoy the privileges as two individual members by paying a subscription one and a half times the single membership fees, instead of two single membership fees.

vi) Institution members: Institution shall be given membership on payment of prescribed fees and satisfying other conditions and the Institution shall be represented by a Registered Modern Medical Practitioner only who is a QPMPA member.

8. Subscription, Central fund Contributions (CFC) & Legal Fund Contributions (LFC)


a) To become a member and to continue as a member of QPMPA each member shall pay the subscription notified in the Byelaws as given below.

b) Local and State Branches are at liberty to fix the subscription rates to be collected from the members in its area of operation for their local activities and the minimum subscription shall be as shown:-

Local Branch

Annual Single Member : Rs. 600/- pa
Annual Couple Members : Rs. 900/- pa
Life Single Member : Rs. 6,000/-
Life Couple Members : Rs. 9,000/-

Note: The above subscription includes a Journal share of Rs. 100 for Annual Single member, Rs. 150 for Annual Couple member, Rs. 1,000 for Life Single member and Rs. 1,500 for Life Couple member. The Central QPMPA is responsible for the printing and publishing of the QPMPA.JMS. This Journal share of subscription shall be paid to Central QPMPA.

i) The Local Branch shall pay as CFC to the State Office at the following minimum rates and in turn the State Office shall pay the Central share along with the Journal share in full as shown:-

CFC disbursement calculation —
1. Local Branch (Annual Member) Rs. 600
2. Journal share Rs. 100
3. Balance with LB Rs. 500
4. State Share 50% of No. 3 Rs. 250
5. Actual Local Br. share (3-4) Rs. 250
6. Central share 30% of No. 4 Rs. 75
7. Actual State Office share (4-6) Rs. 175
8. Actual Central Off. share (2+6) Rs. 175
Total Rs. 600

ii) The Local Branch shall pay the amount shown under State to the State Office and in turn the State Branch shall pay the amount shown under Central to the Central Office.

State Central
Annual Single Member (600) : Rs. 350/- Rs. 175/- pa
Annual Couple Members (900) : Rs. 525/- Rs. 262.50 pa
Life Single Member (6,000) : Rs. 3,500/- Rs. 1,750/-
Life Couple Members (9,000) : Rs. 5,250/- Rs. 2,625/-

c) Direct Members to the State Office shall pay at the following minimum rates or as decided by the State Office and shall pay Central share as shown below:-

State Central
Annual Single Member : Rs. 600/- Rs. 250/- pa
Annual Couple Members : Rs. 900/- Rs. 375/- pa
Life Single Member : Rs. 6,000/- Rs. 2,500/-
Life Couple Members : Rs. 9,000/- Rs. 3,750/-

d) Direct Members to the Central Office shall pay at the following rates as shown below:-

Central
Annual Single Member : Rs. 600/- pa
Annual Couple Members : Rs. 900/- pa
Life Single Member : Rs. 6,000/-
Life Couple Members : Rs. 9,000/-

e) Institution Members are divided into six (6) types and they shall join as members at the Local Branch, the State Branch or the Central QPMPA as the case may be and shall pay the subscription fixed by the Local Branch or State Branch and the minimum shall be as follows for the purpose of calculating the share payable to Central Office:-

Type 1 — Clinics and Dispensaries without any Inpatient Beds:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 700/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 7,000/-

The Local Branch shall pay the State share and the State Branch shall pay the
Central share as follows:-

E.g.: Type 1: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office

If joining Local Branch:
Annual Member: Rs. 700 Rs. 400 Rs. 190/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 7,000 Rs. 4,000 Rs. 1,900/-
If joining State Branch:
Annual Member: Rs. 700 Rs. 280/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 7,000 Rs. 2,800/-
If joining Central Office:
Annual Member: Rs. 700/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 7,000/-

Type 2 — Hospitals with up to 20 Inpatient Beds:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 1,500/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 15,000/-

E.g.: Type 2: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office
Annual Member: Rs. 1,500 Rs. 800 Rs. 310/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 15,000 Rs. 8,000 Rs. 3,100/-
Annual Member: Rs. 1,500 Rs. 520/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 15,000 Rs. 5,200/-
Annual Member: Rs. 1,500/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 15,000/-

Type 3 — Hospitals with 21 to 50 Inpatient Beds:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 3,000/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 30,000/-

E.g.: Type 3: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office
Annual Member: Rs. 3,000 Rs. 1,550 Rs. 535/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 30,000 Rs. 15,500 Rs. 5,350/-
Annual Member: Rs. 3,000 Rs. 970/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 30,000 Rs. 9,700/-
Annual Member: Rs. 3,000/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 30,000/-

Type 4 — Hospitals with 51 to 100 Inpatient Beds:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 4,000/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 40,000/-

E.g.: Type 4: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office

Annual Member: Rs. 4,000 Rs. 2,050 Rs. 685/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 40,000 Rs. 20,500 Rs. 6,850/-
Annual Member: Rs. 4,000 Rs. 1,270/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 40,000 Rs. 12,700/-
Annual Member: Rs. 4,000/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 40,000/-

Type 5 — Hospitals with more than 100 Inpatient Beds:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 5,000/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 50,000/-

E.g.: Type 5: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office
Annual Member: Rs. 5,000 Rs. 2,550 Rs. 835/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 50,000 Rs. 25,500 Rs. 8,350/-
Annual Member: Rs. 5,000 Rs. 1,570/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 50,000 Rs. 15,700/-
Annual Member: Rs. 5,000/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 50,000/-

Type 6 — Hospitals with Undergraduate or Postgraduate teaching courses in Medicine:-

Annual Membership : Rs. 10,000/- per year
Life Membership : Rs. 100,000/-

E.g.: Type 6: L. Branch S. Branch C. Office

Annual Member: Rs. 10,000 Rs. 5,050 Rs. 1,585/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 100,000 Rs. 50,500 Rs. 15,850/-
Annual Member: Rs. 10,000 Rs. 3,070/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 100,000 Rs. 30,700/-
Annual Member: Rs. 10,000/- pa
Life Member: Rs. 100,000/-

f) The amount due from each member in a Local Branch to the State and Central Offices shall be termed as “Central Fund Contribution” (CFC). The Local Branches shall pay this in one instalment to the State Branch on or before 30th April of every year for the current year. The State Branch shall pay the CFC to the Central Office on or before 31st May of every year.

g) To survive in a democracy an organisation like QPMPA must be a vigilant and alert watchdog in issues affecting the members and their institutions and act promptly as required at the correct time and at the right place. In most of the issues, the Judiciary is our last resort and to fight issues legally we shall have a “Legal/Liaison Fund Contributions” (LFC) annually from every member.

i) The Local/State Branches shall collect LFC from the members and remit the full amount to the Central Office every year along with the CFC before 31st May of every year.

ii) The minimum LFC for all Individual Members shall be Rs. 200/- and for Couple Members Rs. 300/- per annum.

Note:- All the Single Life Members of the QPMPA can make a lump sum contribution of Rs. 3,000 and Couple Life Members Rs. 4,500 in lieu of annual contribution and regularise their membership status at the National level.

New Life Members shall pay this LFC cited at the time of joining the QPMPA and the whole amount shall be paid to Central Office.

iii) The LFC for Institutional Members shall be as follows:-
Annual Life

Type 1 — Rs. 500/- Rs. 7,500/-
Type 2 — Rs. 1,000/- Rs. 15,000/-
Type 3 — Rs. 1,500/- Rs. 22,500/-
Type 4 — Rs. 2,000/- Rs. 30,000/-
Type 5 — Rs. 2,500/- Rs. 37,500/-
Type 6 — Rs. 3,000/- Rs. 45,000/-

9. Privileges

a) The payment of the subscription and LFC shall entitle the member for the corresponding period to all privileges as per the rules and byelaws.

b) A member shall be entitled to receive a copy of the circular or any publication of the Association free of charge or at the rate fixed by the SWC and CWC.

c) All members shall have the right to attend and take part in the discussion in all general and clinical meetings, lecturers and conferences organised by the QPMPA.

d) Institution shall have only one vote irrespective of the beds strength.

e) Associate members shall not have voting rights and they shall not hold any Central or State Office post.

10. Termination

a) By resignation: A Local Branch Member of the QPMPA can resign his/her membership by giving thirty days notice in writing to the respective Local Branch Secretary after clearing all dues to the Branch. The Branch Secretary shall place the resignation letter before the Executive Committee of the Branch for consideration and inform the decision to the State Secretary. A Direct Member can resign his/her membership by giving thirty days notice to the Central/State Secretary as the case may be. The resigning member shall clear all dues outstanding against his/her name. The resignation letter shall be considered and disposed of by the SWC/CWC as required.

b) By nonpayment of subscription & LFC after due notice: Registered notice mentioning the dues amount should be sent to the defaulters before the Thirty first Day of May every year, and in case of nonpayment, the membership shall automatically cease with effect from First day of June of the same year.

c) Membership shall terminate on the grounds of undesirable and unethical conduct.

d) On the ground of a conviction in a Court of Law, membership shall be terminated.

11. Re-Admission

a) Any Member whose Membership was terminated on the grounds of Resignation or nonpayment of dues can be readmitted on fresh application on the following conditions:-

i) It should be recommended by a State Working Committee/Central Working Committee Member as applicable.

ii) All dues payable by the member should be cleared.

iii) The time interval between such application and readmission shall be decided by the State Working Committee/Central Working Committee as applicable.

b) Any member whose name was removed from the membership register of QPMPA, on the grounds of conviction in a Court of Law, or his name being removed from the MCI Register, shall not be readmitted till he is finally acquitted by the Court, and his name is reinstalled in the Register of the MCI.

12. Finance: Income and Expenditure

a) Income:

i) Share of the Central Fund Contribution (CFC) and Legal/Liaison Fund Contribution (LFC) as per the byelaws from Local and State Branches.

ii) Income from the subscription and LFC from Annual and Life Direct Individual, Couple and Institution members.

iii) 20% of the profit of the National/State Annual Conferences conducted by Local branches. The State Branch/Central Office shall share this amount equally.

iv) Special contribution and/or donations raised directly or through Local/State Branches.

v) Income received from Publications, if any.

vi) Contribution received from the Local/State Branches organising other Special Functions, if any.

vii) Bequests received from persons or organisations who desire to benefit the QPMPA; or Bequest received for any specific purpose as Endowment.

viii) Interest on Deposits.

ix) Rents collected on property, if any.

x) Other sources duly authorised by the State/Central Working Committees.

b) Reserve Fund:

i) Contribution from Local/State Branches towards this.

ii) Minimum of 25% of the surplus fund of the Central Office.

iii) Contribution from individuals or members especially towards this.

The Reserve Fund can be drawn and spent only by a Special Resolution at the Central Working Committee, the notice for which, with reasons for such withdrawal, clearly mentioned, shall be duly circulated and in which three-fourth of the accredited members present voting in favour of the resolution.

c) Legal/Liaison Fund:

i) Contribution from Local/State Branches towards this.

ii) Minimum of 25% of the surplus fund of the Central Office.

iii) Contribution from individuals or members especially towards this.

iv) This fund to be used to fight legal issues and maintain Liaison Offices.

d) Expenditure:
The funds shall be utilised for:

i) All ordinary expenses, such as postage, etc.

ii) Pay rents, salaries, wages and other charges as may be necessary.

iii) For the issue of the Journal, and other authorised publications and letters.

iv) Other authorised purposes like scientific investigations, conferences, prizes, scholarships, etc.

v) Expenses for Central Working Committee Meetings, unless a Branch hosts it.

vi) TA to the Central Office bearers shall be given as decided by the CWC from time to time.

PART - III
Management

13. Central Working Committee (CWC)

The general control, management and direction of the policy and affairs of the QPMPA, India shall be vested in the body styled as the “CENTRAL WORKING COMMITTEE” (CWC). Such power shall be derived through a resolution passed (to such effect) each year by the General Body during the Annual Conference or Annual General Body.

14. Composition

The Central Working Committee shall be composed of the following members —

a) Ex-Officio Members:

i) The President of the QPMPA, India of the current year.

ii) All the Past Presidents of the QPMPA, India.

iii) The Vice-Presidents of the QPMPA, India of the current year.

iv) The Honorary General Secretary of the QPMPA, India of the current year.

v) All the Past General Secretaries of the QPMPA, India.

vi) All the Joint Secretaries of QPMPA, India of the current year.

vii) The Honorary Treasurer, of the QPMPA, India of the current year.

viii) The Editor of the Journal of the QPMPA, India of the current year.

ix) All the State Office bearers of the QPMPA of the current year or their nominees with authorisation letter.

x) One elected member from each Local Branch or their nominees with authorisation letter.

xi) All Past State Presidents and Secretaries of QPMPA, Kerala State Branch.

b) Elected Members:

The Local Branch at its annual meeting shall elect one member to represent the Local Branch at the Central Working Committee.

c) Nominated Members:

The President can nominate Two (2) members to the Central Working Committee Meeting, who will have no voting rights, but who can take part in the discussions. Such nomination by the President is valid to that particular meeting only.

d) Invited Members:

The President can invite not more than three (3) members as Special Invitees for one particular meeting, who will have no voting rights, but will take part in the discussions. Such members need not necessarily be members of the QPMPA, but may belong to the category of experts in a particular field (such as advocates, etc.) whose opinion may have bearing on the topic to be discussed on that particular meeting.

e) Though the Office-Bearers and others may change, the Central Working Committee is a continuous body.

15. Powers and Functions

a) The CWC will administer the affairs of the Association in accordance with the Memorandum, Rules and Byelaws of the Association. The CWC shall exercise such powers and do such acts and things as may be exercised or done by the Association.

b) The CWC shall have the right to delegate some of its powers to any special and/or adhoc Committees, which it has the right to appoint.

c) The decision of the CWC in matters concerning the Association shall be final, except those concerning Election disputes, Constitutional amendments and other disputes, when the CWC shall delegate such powers to specially appointed Committee(s) as per Byelaws, described hereinafter.

16. Meetings

a) The CWC shall meet at least two times in an association year, apart from the Annual meeting, which shall ordinarily be held and be finished before the first day at the venue of the Annual Conference of the QPMPA.

b) Ordinary meetings of the CWC shall be held at a place, date and time, which shall be decided by the Honorary General Secretary in consultation with the President. Notice of the ordinary meeting along with agenda and minutes of the previous meeting should have been received by CWC Members three weeks before the date of the meeting. Such information being despatched under certificate of posting. The Annual meeting of the CWC shall usually be held at the venue of the Annual Conference.

c) Apart from the meetings described above there shall be a “REQUISITION MEETING” of the CWC. The Honorary Secretary shall call for such Meeting within Four (4) weeks on receipt of a requisition signed by at least 30% of the total accredited members of the CWC, stating specifically the business for which such a requisition is made. The Honorary General Secretary in consultation with the President shall fix the time, date and place of such meeting. In such a meeting no other matter shall be discussed other than the matter specified in the Notice.

17. Office bearers of the QPMPA

a) The following Office-Bearers shall be elected for the proper management and administration of the QPMPA.

i) The President.

ii) Four Vice-Presidents on Zonal basis.
The country will be divided into four zones, namely —
North Zone —
East Zone —
South Zone —
West Zone —

iii) The Honorary General Secretary.

iv) Four Joint-Secretaries on Zonal Basis as in the case of Vice-Presidents.

v) The Honorary National Treasurer.

vi) The Managing Editor of the Journal.

b) All the Office Bearers shall assume Office on the day of the Annual Conference and their term of Office shall be for TWO Association years.

18. Duties and Powers of the Office-bearers

a) PRESIDENT:

i) The President shall be the Chairman of the meetings of the committee(s) of which he is the President and shall preside over any other committee of which he is a member and shall preside over all meetings at the National Annual Conference.

ii) Shall guide and control the activities of the QPMPA, India and Central Working Committee.

iii) Shall regulate the proceedings of the meetings and conferences, interpret the rules and Byelaws and give ruling on doubtful points. The President’s ruling cannot be questioned unless he himself reverses his ruling.

iv) Shall have only a casting vote in case of an indecisive voting.

b) VICE-PRESIDENTS:

i) Shall help in the organisation of State Branches by making tours and addressing members, etc., in their zones.

ii) Any grievances or disputes should be brought to the notice of the concerned Zonal Vice-President and the disputes, grievances, etc., should be settled with the Vice-President’s help and in his presence. If such move fails, only then it should be brought to the concerned forum of the QPMPA, India and that too only through the concerned Vice-President, with his approval and consent.

iii) One among them shall act for the President in the absence or inability of the President; and he shall be named as “Senior Vice-President.”

c) HONY. GENERAL SECRETARY:

i) Shall be in charge of the Headquarters (Central) Office, and the affairs of the Central Working Committee.

ii) Shall be the Correspondent on behalf of the Association, and conduct all correspondences.

iii) Shall have general supervision of accounts, pass all bills for payment and sign cheques jointly with the Treasurer.

iv) Shall organise, arrange and convene meetings, conferences, Lectures, etc.

v) Shall maintain a correct and up-to-date Register of all members.

vi) Shall advance the cause of the Association in general.

vii) Shall prepare a Budget and present it at the National Annual Meeting for approval.

viii) Shall bring any matter that are of interest and concern to the Association, to the notice of the President for guidance and further procedure.

d) HONY. JOINT SECRETARIES:

The joint Secretaries are also elected on Zonal basis. Their main functions shall be to assist the respective Vice-Presidents in their functions and activities, and bring to the notice of the Hony. General Secretary matters that need attention in consultation with the respective Zonal Vice-Presidents. They are in charge of the particular Zone for which they are elected, as the General Secretary shall be in charge of the Central affairs of the Association.

e) THE HONY. TREASURER:

i) Shall receive all money from sources as defined in the byelaws, and deposit them in Nationalised Banks that are approved by the CWC to the credit of the QPMPA, India. Such account(s) shall be a Joint Account to be operated by the Hony. Treasurer and the Hony. General Secretary jointly.

ii) Shall be responsible for all income as defined in the Byelaws.

iii) Shall dispose of bills for payment, as sanctioned by the General Secretary only on his written requisition to that effect. As all the bills of payment should have the approval of the CWC, if the Treasurer has any bonafide doubt about this, he has the right to bring it to the notice of the CWC before payment even if it had the written requisition from the General Secretary.

iv) Shall be responsible for keeping up-to-date accounts of the Central (HQ) Office.

v) Shall get the Annual Statements of Accounts and Balance Sheet required and get it audited by the auditors approved by the CWC and submit for approval at the National Annual Meeting.

f) MANAGING EDITOR OF THE JOURNAL:

Shall be in charge of and accountable to the regular editing and publication of the Official Journal of the Association. He may appoint his own team of Secretary, Treasurer and members of the Editorial Board. He shall prepare Annual Budget and get it approved in the National Annual Meeting. He shall also submit regular reports and Statement of accounts in every CWC Meeting.

19. Termination

The term of any of the Office-bearer (or all of them) shall be considered terminated, before their full term of office is over under the following circumstances:-

a) If any of them submit their resignation giving Thirty Days notice to the CWC through the Secretary. If the Secretary wants to resign, it should be submitted through one of the Joint Secretaries and if all of them or a group of them wants to resign en masse the letter should be addressed to the CWC directly through the Secretary, who till the matter is decided shall conduct the business. The CWC should assemble within a period of Thirty days from the receipt of such a letter to dispose of this matter.

b) Office-Bearers can also be removed by a vote of no confidence observing the following procedure —

i) Not less than 30% of the CWC members should give to the CWC a one-sentence resolution with their original signatures attached, to the Secretary or the concerned person — “The Association has lost confidence in .........”

ii) On receipt of such a letter, after verifying the correctness, etc., of the letter, in consultation with the President, the Secretary should call for a Requisition Meeting of the CWC within Thirty days.

iii) The necessary Quorum for such a meeting shall be 75% of the accredited members of the CWC; and within half an hour after the assembly of such a meeting if there is no required quorum the resolution shall be considered lost, and shall not be allowed again in that Association year.

iv) In such a meeting with the required quorum, the President shall preside if the motion is not against him; and the Secretary shall conduct the Meeting if the motion is not against him. If such being the case the Vice-President and the Joint Secretary shall take charge of the proceedings.

v) No other matter shall be taken up for discussion in such a meeting except the matter pertaining to the Resolution.

vi) In such a meeting, all those who wish to express their views shall be given a limited time by the Presiding Officer, but only after the person against whom the Resolution is placed shall be given enough time to explain his stand. The discussion should close when the Presiding Officer so rules.

vii) The Resolution shall be considered passed only if it gets a majority of 51% by a secret ballot of the members present; otherwise, it will be considered lost.

viii) If the resolution is passed, the concerned office-bearer(s) should vacate the office forthwith, handing over all records and papers to the concerned person in the presence of the CWC Members, and to their satisfaction on the same day. If by any unavoidable circumstances there is any discrepancy in handing over the records, etc., the outgoing office-bearer shall be given a specified time to rectify the same. If there is any lapse even after this time limit, the CWC will consider necessary actions to be taken.

ix) Such ousted member shall not hold any office of the Association for the next three (3) Association Years.

x) No Bye-election shall be held in that year, but the adhoc arrangement made during the CWC Meeting, will continue until the end of that year.

20. Association year

a) The official year of activities of the QPMPA shall be from the First day of April to the Thirty-First Day of March next year.

b) All Local/State Branches should send their share of Central Fund Contribution before the 31st May every year.

c) The payment of the CFC should be accompanied by a complete and full address of all members belonging to the Branch for that current year based on which the State/Central Offices shall calculate the CFC. If such a list is not forwarded, the CFC calculation shall be made based on previous year’s record and the difference if any the Local/State Branches should pay.

d) Such of those Local/State Branches who have not cleared the CFC, cannot take part in the Election process, and members of such Branches cannot compete for any posts.

e) Branch(es) that fail(s) to pay CFC consecutively for more than TWO successive years shall be declared DEFUNCT and the name erased from the Register. The concerned Zonal Vice-president and the Joint Secretary shall be responsible to see for such contingency does not arise.

21. Formation of Local/State Branches

a) A minimum of FIVE persons, who are eligible to be members of the QPMPA, as per byelaws — Part II; Section 7; Sub-Section (a) — who reside and do medical practice, or are employed in a place or its neighbourhood may form themselves into a local branch of QPMPA, by a resolution passed at a General Body meeting of such persons, convened for such purpose. The Resolution with the Names of the proposed and accepted list of the Office Bearers of the New Branch and signed Membership application forms along with the prescribed Central Fund Contribution (CFC) shall be sent to the respective State Secretary if there is a State Branch or to the General Secretary if there is no State Branch.

b) Such an application shall be placed before the proper forum by the State/General Secretary at the earliest possible meeting for the approval and the official approval along with the receipt for the CFC received shall be forwarded to the Secretary of the Local Branch.

c) From the time of such approval, the members of the Local Branch thus approved shall enjoy all privileges endowed by the QPMPA.

d) The Election of the Local Branches as per their byelaws shall be conducted on or before the 15th of March, and the list of office-bearers shall be forwarded to the State and/or General Secretaries, on or before the 25th of March every year.

e) Every year the Local Branches shall send the list of members along with the CFC to the State/CentralOffice as the case may be.

f) Five or more Local Branches in a State/Union Territory in India can join together to form a State Branch.

g) TA for attending SWC and CWC meetings shall be paid by the respective Local/State Branches.

22. General Procedure of CWC Meetings

a) Minutes of all meetings shall be correctly kept, maintained and shall be duly declared passed after confirmation at the following meeting of the CWC. This is the responsibility of the General Secretary, or the one who takes his place in any contingency as prescribed in byelaws.

b) No resolution adopted or rejected at a meeting shall again be taken for consideration within six months period or 20% of the CWC members demand for it.

c) Notice of CWC Meetings should be sent through post under Certificate of posting and should be accompanied by the Minutes of the previous meeting,

23. Annual meeting of the Central Working Committee (CWC)

a) The Annual Meeting of the CWC shall ordinarily be held at the time of the Annual National Conference and shall finish its work before the first day of the Annual National Conference of the QPMPA. The place, date and time shall be decided by the Honorary General Secretary in consultation with the President and depending upon the decision of the previous Meeting of the CWC, which would consider invitations from any of the Local/State Branches inviting the Conference to be held at the place of their choice, and hosting the same.

b) The following business shall be transacted at the Annual CWC Meeting —

i) If by any contingency both the President and the Vice-Presidents are not available, a senior person shall be elected as the Chairman of the Meeting.

ii) Adoption of the Minutes of the previous meeting.

iii) Matters arising out of the Minutes.

iv) Adoption of the Annual Report presented by the General Secretary.

v) Discussion on Annual Report.

vi) Adoption of the Audited Accounts presented by the Treasurer after discussions.

vii) Appointment of Auditors, Legal Advisers, etc.

viii) Presentation of the Budget, discussion and adoption.

ix) Resolutions brought forward by CWC, Branches and Individuals subject to the conditions cited below.

x) Any other business with approval of the Chairman/President.

c) The following rules are to be observed to bring Resolutions:

i) Notice of the Resolutions to be moved at the National Annual Meeting should reach the Central (HQ) Office at least one month before the Annual Meeting. No Resolution shall be placed directly at the Annual Meeting, except under some extraordinary circumstances and that too with previous permission by the President and approval of the CWC.

ii) If the Resolution is something pertaining to Constitutional amendment, such a Resolution should reach the General Secretary at least three months before the Annual Meeting, so that it should have been circulated to all Branches for a feedback before being placed before the Annual Meeting.

d) A Notice of at least Three (3) weeks should have been given to all members, along with the Agenda and the minutes of the previous meeting specifying the place, date and time of the CWC Meeting.

e) The Quorum of all the Meetings of the CWC including the Annual Meeting shall be 20% of the accredited members of the CWC.

f) Apart from Requisition and Ordinary Meetings of the CWC, there shall also be special meeting of the CWC. This shall be convened if a State Branch unanimously sends a signed petition to that effect to the General Secretary. The General Secretary shall convey the decision about this to the Branch after the decision of CWC on this matter. If such a meeting is allowed, then as far as possible, the concerned Branch shall host the Meeting and the Agenda shall be as per the General Secretary’s description, in consultation and approval of the President. If there is any special purpose or reason for such a Special Meeting, the concerned Branch should specify the same in their request to the Central Office.

24. National Annual Conference of QPMPA

a) There shall be a National Annual Conference of the QPMPA every year in the month of May at a suitable place and time as decided by the CWC.

b) Any of the Local Branch can invite the Conference to the area of their Branch, and this shall be finalised by the CWC.

c) The venue of the Conference, the Reception Committee, the Fees to be collected under various heads, delegate fees and other details concerning the Conference are to be worked out as and when necessary by the concerned Branch(es) and to be confirmed by the CWC.

d) All members of the QPMPA are entitled to attend the Conference and the General Body Meeting of the QPMPA.

e) Three weeks notice is to be given to all members about the details of the Conference.

f) The quorum of the Conference shall be 10% and that of the General Body meeting shall be the same.

g) 20% of the profit of the National Annual Conference shall be paid as CFC to the Central Office if the Conference is hosted by a State Branch. If the Conference is hosted by a Local Branch, 20% of the profit shall be paid to the State Branch, which in turn shall remit 50% of that as CFC to the Central Office.

h) The following Business shall be transacted in the Annual General Body Meeting —
i) To receive from the CWC the report of the functioning of the Association during the tenure of the outdoing Office-bearers.

ii) To approve the Audited Accounts of the Association.

iii) To consider any other matters duly brought to the notice of the President, and if allowed, discussions on this.

iv) Election of the Office Bearers once in two years.

v) To pass a resolution “to delegate the authority of the General Body, except to amend the constitution, to the CENTRAL WORKING COMMITTEE (CWC).”

vi) To pass a resolution of appreciation to the previous office-bearers if it is allowed by the President.

25. Amendment to the Memorandum, Rules and Byelaws

Whenever it is found necessary and unavoidable, any accredited Member of the QPMPA can bring forth a Constitutional Amendment; for which the following conditions should be followed —

a) If the Amendment is from a Local Branch Member, it should as far as possible come through the concerned Branch. The Member may also send such Amendment directly to the General Secretary, but it cannot be sent without the knowledge of the Local Branch.

b) If the Amendment is from a State Working Committee Member, it should as far as possible come through the concerned State Branch. The Member may also send such Amendment directly to the General Secretary, but it cannot be sent without the knowledge of the State Branch.

c) A CWC Member can directly place a Constitutional Amendment to the CWC, but subject to the conditions, which are applicable to above category also.

d) Resolution(s) concerning Constitutional Amendment should reach the General Secretary Three (3) months before the date that can be fixed for the discussion.

e) The General Secretary should send the copy of such a resolution to all State/Local Branches and all CWC Members seeking their reaction at the earliest.

f) At the Meeting assembled for this purpose, or at the Annual Meeting when this matter comes up the Resolution will be considered passed only when 51% of the CWC Members vote in favour of the Amendment.

g) The amendment passed by the CWC will come into force only after the approval by the following General Body Meeting.

26. Journal of QPMPA

a) There shall be a Journal for the QPMPA, which shall be the Official media of the Association, publishing the views of the QPMPA, on matters that are of concern to the Association. It would also publish regularly, activities of the Branches under the QPMPA, and papers of scientific and professional interest.

b) It shall be published every month (Twelve issues per year.)

c) For the management and publication it shall have the following Office-bearers —

i) The President of the QPMPA.

ii) The Hony. General Secretary of the QPMPA.

iii) The Managing Editor of the Journal.

iv) The Secretary cum Treasurer of the Journal.

v) Five members of the Editorial Board.

Of these (i) & (ii) are ex-officio members and (iii) viz. the Managing Editor shall be elected by the Annual General Body Meeting. The Managing Editor shall be given the authority to choose his own team of Editorial Board and Treasurer.

d) Duties and Functions:

i) The Managing Editor of the Journal shall be responsible for the regular and proper publication of the Journal with the help of his team of Editorial Board and Treasurer.

ii) Shall be responsible for the management of the business and maintenance of the Journal, its printing, distribution, etc.

iii) Shall in all ordinary issues, publish the organisational matters apart from Branch activities, that is supplied by the General/State Secretaries. In the absence of such matter for publication, this space can be utilised for matters that are approved by the Board.

iv) The Journal Committee shall meet once in Three months and during the time of CWC Meeting and submit report regularly to the Central Working Committee.

v) Shall prepare audited yearly financial Statement and submit to the Annual Meeting of the CWC for approval.

vi) Shall have the power to spend money for various purposes connected with the printing and posting of the Journal up to the amount sanctioned in the budget estimate for the year, by the CWC. It should have and obtain special permission to spend, if the expenses are expected to go beyond this limit.

e) Funds and Finance for the Journal Committee:

The income for the Journal is derived from —

i) Subsidies and grant from the Central Fund of the QPMPA.

ii) Advertisement charges received.

iii) Sale cost of any publication or papers of scientific or Organisational interest that are allowed by CWC.

iv) From donations for the specific purpose of the Journal and bequests if any.
Such accrued income shall be ear marked and kept separately as decided by the CWC and shall be spent only for the purpose of the Journal affairs.

27. Robert’s Rules of Order

“The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the QPMPA in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these byelaws and any special rules of order the organisation may adopt.”

PART - IV
Election Procedure

28. The following Office Bearers shall be elected once in Two (2) years from the members present at the National Annual General Body Meeting —

a) National President,

b) National Vice-Presidents -Four (4) on Zonal basis,

c) Hony. General Secretary,

d) National Joint Secretaries -Four (4) on Zonal basis,

e) Hony. National Treasurer, and,

f) Journal Editor.

29. Eligibility for the above posts

a) A Candidate for the Post of the National President shall:

i) Be an active life or ordinary member of the QPMPA, for five years, without any dues, and proposed by a Local/State Branch in good standing, and,

ii) Has served or will have served at the time he/she takes the office as National President, as a State Working Committee/central working committee Member for a term of Four Years out of which a full term of Two years or a major portion thereof as State/National Secretary or State/National Treasurer or State/National Joint Secretary or Journal Editor or Local/State Branch President.

b) A Candidate for the post of National Vice President/General Secretary/National Joint Secretary/National Treasurer/Journal Editor shall:

i) Be an active member of the QPMPA for Four years as life or ordinary, without any dues, and proposed by a Local/State Branch in good standing, and,

ii) Has served or will have served at the time he/she takes the office as National Vice-President/General Secretary/National Joint Secretary/National Treasurer/Journal Editor, as a State Working Committee/Central Working Committee Member or Local/State Branch President for a full term of Two years or a major portion thereof.

c) Election Procedure:

i) An Election Committee consisting a Chairman and two other members shall be nominated at the first CWC meeting of every election year.

ii) The Election Committee shall conduct the election and install the new team at the National Annual Meeting.

d) The State Annual Conference of the QPMPA, Kerala, to be held in May 2010 shall also be the first National QPMPA Conference.

e) This 2010 conference will elect the first team of Office bearers for QPMPA, India and they shall continue in office for a period of three years. There after the term of office shall be for two years.

PART - V
Arbitration Tribunal

30. Any dispute concerning constitutional points, Election procedures or any other Organisational matters, should be clearly drafted by the aggrieved member or Branch, and handed over to the State/General Secretary; and the State/General Secretary within two weeks of receipt of such a complaint shall call for a SWC/CWC Meeting and in this meeting a one-member Arbitration Bench shall be formed, if the dispute is not settled by SWC/CWC.

31. The procedure after the formation of such a Bench is entirely left with the Bench and there cannot be any objections or questions about this.

32. The decision and the award given by the Bench shall be final, and the Award binds both the parties.

33. Any member who takes any dispute to the Court of Law without exhausting these means of redress shall be suspended from the Association for six years.

PART - VI
Branch Rules and Byelaws

34. The Rules and Byelaws of State and Local Branches of the QPMPA shall be framed in such a fashion to be consistent with and not contradicting the Rules and Byelaws of the QPMPA, India.

35. The Rules and Byelaws of State and Local Branches shall be first approved at their respective levels and then submitted before the CWC for final approval.

36. The State Rules and Byelaws received by the General Secretary for the approval by the CWC, must be circulated to all CWC Members alongwith the CWC meeting Notice convened for the approval of the same.