Medical Colleges with intake capacity of 50 MBBS seats now possible: NMC

New Delhi: It is now possible to open a medical college with an intake capacity of only 50 MBBS seats under the new Minimum Standard Requirements (MSR) 2023 regulations for undergraduate medical courses.

"These new rules enable even smaller hospitals with a 220-bed capacity to start a medical college for 50 MBBS students," the National Medical Commission (NMC) officials told the Medical Dialogues team.

In the recently held press conference, the NMC officials informed the media about the various changes in the Minimum Standard Requirements from the erstwhile MSR 2020 to the newly released MSR 2023 and explained how these new rules have relaxed the requirements for setting up medical colleges in terms of requirement of beds, departments, and faculty positions.

Under these new rules, the Commission has removed the land requirement for setting up a medical college, which was previously 20 acres gen/ 10 acres metropolis under MSR 2020.

Although there was no provision under MSR 2020 for setting up a medical college with an intake capacity of 50 MBBS seats, now it is possible under MSR 2023, highlighted NMC. In the case of MSR 2020, permission used to be given for 100/150/250 MBBS seats.

Requirements for setting up a medical college with 50 MBBS seats: 

Requirements of Hospital Beds:

As per the new MSR 2023, a hospital must have 220 beds to start a medical college with an intake capacity of 50 MBBS seats. Among these, 50 beds should be for General Medicine and General Surgery each, 25 for Pediatrics and OBS & Gyn each, 5 for Dermatology and Psychiatry each, 20 for Orthopaedics, 10 each for ENT, and Ophthalmology, and the hospital must have 20 ICU beds. The rules specify that the hospital must have at least 400 OPD/day.

Faculty Requirement for 50 MBBS Seats under MSR 2023: 

The NMC officials further informed that for 50 MBBS seats, the medical college must have a total number of 59 faculties. Further, the institute must have a total number of 38 Tutors/Demonstrators/SRs.

Sharing the numbers in detail, the President of NMC UG Medical Education Board, Dr. Aruna Vanikar elaborated that while for 100 MBBS seats, 90 faculties were required under MSR 2020, only 85 faculties are required under MSR 2023. Similarly, the number of required faculties has been reduced to 150 MBBS seats as well. Previously, under MSR 2020, 116 faculties were required for 150 MBBS seats. However, MSR 2023 specifies that 114 faculties are required for the same.

The requirement of faculties remains the same in the case of 200 MBBS seats. Both MSR 2020 and MSR 2023 specify that 142 faculties are required in a medical college with an intake capacity of 200 MBBS seats. Meanwhile, in the case of 250 MBBS seats, the requirement of 159 faculties under MSR 2020 has been increased to 168 faculties under MSR 2023.