264 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
Dr. Ambedkar : That power exists in section 10(2).
Shri Tyagi : Sir, I do not move my amendment.
Pandit Thakur Das Bhargava : I beg to move :
“In clause 4, in the proposed item (2A) of Part I of the Schedule to the Dentists Act, 1948, omit all the words occurring after ‘March, 1940’.
Therefore, as you have recognised all others as dentists on the basis of practise the principle of practise should also apply to these eight or ten mens. Therefore, I would request that this amendment may be accepted.
Mr. Deputy Speaker : May I know the reason of the Hon. Minister to this amendment ?
Dr. Ambedkar : This clause is a clause which really gives effect to the suggestion made by the West Bengal Government. Personally I myself feel, however much sympathy I may have with my friend Mr. Bhargava, it involves the question of the assessment of the qualification of the dentist as distinguished from a person who makes a denture. I thought he was rather eloquent on the man who makes a denture. A person may make a denture without being a dentist. We are talking of a dentist, which is a very different profession.
Pandit Thakur Das Bhargava : But he has got a degree of L.D.Sc.
Dr. Ambedkar : The point is this. When the Act was passed, this institution was not deemed to be worthy of recognition. Subsequently there has been a considerable degree of agitation and the West Bengal Government decided to examine the position as to whether any of the persons qualified by tuition in this college were worthy of recognition. They came to the conclusion that before 1940 the standard observed by this institution was some thing which could be considered for the purpose of recognition. But there again they said that although there was a standard maintained it was also known that many boys merely attended and filled in certain terms without learning anything. Therefore, the two additional qualifications were introduced that he should not only have obtained his diploma before 1940 but in the course