Tamil Nadu will have at least 400 more MBBS seats on its seat matrix for the 2020 medical admissions. The Medical Council of India has increased 250 seats in existing medical colleges – government and private – and also permitted a new self-financing college to start UG medical programme in 2021.
The Government Kanyakumari Medical College and Hospital has been permitted to add 50 more MBBS seats to the existing 100 seats, director of medical education Dr R Narayanababu said. The medical college in Asaripallam, Nagercoil, started iwith 100 seats in 2004. In 2016, the college started postgraduate medical programmes. “The policy of the state is to start new medical in every district and increase seats in all existing medical colleges to 250. Besides training doctors, these colleges will function as tertiary health care facilities,” he said.
Panimalar Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, a self-financing medical college affiliated to Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University, has been permitted to start MBBS course with 150 seats this year. The MCI website also shows 100 additional seats each at deemed universities Meenakshi Medical College Hospital And Research Institute and Saveetha Medical College in Kancheepuram.
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Officials say at least three more new private medical colleges have applied for MCI permission. “If they get permission they will add another 450 seats,” a senior official said. “As of now, these colleges have been asked to make a few rectifications and reapply.”
Earlier this week, health minister C Vijayabaskar said the state is waiting for MCI officials to inspect the campus of 11 new medical colleges the state was permitted to start. In August, the cabinet committee on economic affairs had approved setting up of 75 government medical colleges by 2021-22 across the country.
The Centre also offered to partially fund the project as it wanted to increase the number of medical colleges in the country. Tamil Nadu, which has 24 medical colleges at present, got permission to start 11 medical colleges with 150 seats each.
“By next academic year, we will have 1,650 MBBS seats,” he said.
Courtesy: TOI
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