New Delhi: After strong protests from southern states, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has put on hold its decision to set up more MBBS colleges and add more undergraduate seats on the basis of a state’s population.
In a notification issued in August, the regulator had said this would be implemented from the next academic session.
The notification read: “After 2023-24 (from the 2024-25 academic year), Letter of Permission for starting of new medical colleges would be issued only for annual intake capacity of 50/100/150 seats (new medical colleges will only have 50-150 seats provided that medical colleges shall follow the ratio of 100 MBBS seats per 10 lakh population in that state/Union Territory.”
This dictated ratio of 100 seats for every 10 lakh population, however, would have restricted all five southern states from opening new medical colleges, since they already had the required number of seats. The decision particularly affected Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, which are aiming to open at least one medical college in each district.
In the revised public notice Wednesday, the regulator deferred its decision to 2025-26, adding that this was being done on the orders of the Union health Ministry. Incidentally, none of the southern states are ruled by the BJP.
The matter, the notice said, was examined by the commission’s Undergraduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) following a letter from the ministry sent to it on 1 November before the decision was taken. The notice was signed by UGMEB chairperson Aruna V. Vanikar.
Vanikar told ThePrint that the August guidelines were widely applauded and supported by several associations, including the Indian Medical Association — the largest network of doctors in India.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
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