The Government of Bihar on July 22, 2026, issued the Bihar Nurses Registration (Amendment) Bill, 2026 to further amend the Bihar and Orissa Nurses Registration Act, 1935.
The following amendments have been stated:
• In section 2 of the Bihar and Orissa Nurses Registration Act, 1935, after sub-section (1), the following sub-section shall be added, as follows:-
"(m) Self-certification means a certificate submitted by a nurse, health visitor, midwife, trained midwife registered with the Indian Nursing Council or the Nursing Council of any State other than the State of Bihar in the format prescribed by the State Government."
• After section 10 of the principal Act, the following section is inserted, which will go as follows:
10A-To practice on the basis of self-certification-
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, any nurse, health visitor, midwife, trained midwife whose name is validly registered in the register of the Indian Nursing Council or any other State Nursing Council shall be entitled to legally practice nursing in the State of Bihar, without the need for any local registration or no objection certificate from the erstwhile State Nursing Council.
Provided it submits self-certification to the Council."
(2) The Council shall compile a register of nurses, health visitors and midwives working in the State on the basis of self-certification.
(3) The Council shall have the power to suspend the right to practice within the State of Bihar of any person working under the self-certification model if he is found guilty of professional misconduct.
(4) Where the right to practice of any personnel is suspended under sub-section (3) of this section, such suspension shall be recorded in the register maintained under sub-section (2) of this section and the parent department or the State Nursing Council or the Indian Nursing Council shall be informed.
Provided that any nurse, health visitor or midwife legally practising in the State under the self-certification provisions of this section shall be deemed to be a registered nurse, health visitor or midwife for the purposes of section 21 of this Act.
• In sub-section (2) of section 17 of the principal Act, at the end of the existing clauses, the following clause shall be added, which reads as follows:-
(f) The power to prescribe the format, procedural guidelines and administrative mechanism for submission of self-certification by nursing personnel registered with any other State Nursing Council or the Indian Nursing Council shall be exclusively vested in the State Government.
• The Bihar Nurses Registration (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026 (Ordinance No. 02, 2026) is hereby repealed.
(2) Notwithstanding such repeal, anything done or any action taken in exercise of any power conferred by or under the said Ordinance shall be deemed to have been done or taken in exercise of the powers conferred by or under this Act, as if this Act were in force on the day on which such thing was done or such action was taken.
[Notification No. V.S.V.-24/2026-3318 V.S]
