1,18,137 MBBS Seats Available in India- Maximum seats in Karnataka, Medical Colleges in UP: Health Ministry Gives Break Up

New Delhi: Currently, there are altogether 1,18,137 MBBS seats available in India and among these 60,422 seats are available in the government medical colleges and 57,715 MBBS seats are available in the private medical colleges, the Union Minister of State for Health Smt. Anupriya Patel informed the Lok Sabha.

Further, there are 73,157 postgraduate seats available across various specialities, the Union MoS Health informed. 

According to the data shared by the Union Health Ministry, the Government has increased the number of medical colleges by 102% since 2014. Back then India had only 387 medical colleges and currently 780 medical colleges are available in India. There has also been a huge 130% increase in MBBS seats from 51,348 MBBS seats before 2014 to 1,18,137 MBBS seats as of now.

The data revealed that while Karnataka has the maximum number (12545) of MBBS seats, the State of Uttar Pradesh has the maximum number of medical colleges (86 colleges).

The Union Health Ministry shared these details while responding to the queries regarding the number of available medical seats. Parliament member Shri Pradip Purohit sought the details of the seats for NEET UG and PG in Government and Private medical colleges. He also asked if there was any fixed fee structure and whether the Government had plans to introduce a uniform fee cap for NEET seats in private colleges.

Apart from these, the Union Health Ministry was also asked about any possible relaxation in the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) for foreign medical students affected by COVID-19 and whether any alternative options had been provided for foreign medical students who are unable to complete the internships or exams due to COVID-19 disruptions. Other queries included details of PG fellowship programmes for foreign and Indian medical graduates. 

Several other members raised questions regarding the total number of medical colleges present in India as compared to 2014, the increase in the total number of MBBS seats since 2014 etc.

Available UG & PG Medical Seats:

Responding to these queries, the Union MoS Health stated, "As informed by the National Medical Commission (NMC), there are total number of 1,18,137 undergraduate medical seats, which include 60,422 seats in government medical colleges and 57,715 seats in private medical colleges. Further, there are 73,157 postgraduate seats available across various specialities."

As per the data shared by the Ministry, Karnataka has 12545 MBBS Seats, followed by 12425 MBBS seats in Uttar Pradesh, and 12050 MBBS seats in Tamil Nadu.

Apart from these Andaman & Nicobar has 114 MBBS seats, Andhra Pradesh has 6785 MBBS seats, Arunachal Pradesh has 100 MBBs seats, Assam has 1650 seats, Bihar has 2995 seats, Chandigarh has 150 MBBS seats and Chhattisgarh has 2455 MBBS seats.

Further, there are 177 MBBS seats in Dadra & Nagar Haveli, 1497 seats in Delhi, 200 seats in Goa, 7250 seats in Gujarat, 2185 seats in Haryana, 920 seats in Himachal Pradesh, 1339 seats in Jammu and Kashmir, 1055 seats in Jharkhand, 4905 seats in Kerala, 5200 seats in Madhya Pradesh, 11845 seats in Maharashtra, 525 in Manipur, 200 in Meghalaya, 100 seats in Mizoram, 100 seats in Nagaland, 2725 seats in Orissa, 1830 seats in Puducherry, 1850 seats in Punjab, 6475 MBBS seats in Rajasthan, 150 seats in Sikkim, 9040 seats in Telangana, 425 seats in Tripura, 1400 seats in Uttarakhand, and 5475 seats in West Bengal.

State UT - wise break-up of the UG seats for the year 2023-24 and 2024-25:

"The Government has increased number of medical colleges and subsequently increased MBBS seats. There is an increase of 102% in medical colleges from 387 before 2014 to 780 as of now. Further, there is an increase of 130% in MBBS seats from 51,348 before 2014 to 1,18,137 as of now," the MoS Health further informed.

She further provided the details of the medical colleges available in India in 2024-2025. As per the data, the highest number of medical colleges i.e. 86 medical colleges are available in Uttar Pradesh, followed by 80 medical colleges in Maharashtra, 77 medical colleges in Tamil Nadu, 73 medical colleges in Karnataka and 65 medical colleges in Telangana.

Apart from these, States and UTs including Andaman & Nicobar, Arunachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Dadra& Nagar Haveli, Goa, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim have 1 medical college each and Meghalaya has 2 medical colleges. Further, there are 38 medical colleges in Andhra Pradesh, 14 medical colleges in Assam, 22 medical colleges in Bihar, 16 medical colleges in Chhattisgarh, 10 medical colleges in Delhi, 41 medical colleges in Gujarat, 15 medical colleges in Haryana, 8 medical colleges in Himachal Pradesh, 12 medical colleges in Jammu & Kashmir, 9 medical colleges in Jharkhand, 34 medical colleges in Kerala, 31 medical colleges in Madhya Pradesh, 4 medical colleges in Manipur, 19 medical colleges in Odisha, 9 medical colleges in Puducherry, 13 medical colleges in Punjab, 43 medical colleges in Rajasthan, 3 medical colleges in Tripura, 86 medical colleges in Uttar Pradesh, 10 medical colleges in Uttarakhand, and 38 medical colleges in West Bengal.

State/UT wise details of number of Medical colleges in AY 2013-14 and 2024-25:

*AIIMS have been included in the respective States.

In response to the question of whether Government has plans to set up a medical college in Chatra District of Jharkhand, the MoS Health informed, "Under Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for ‘Establishment of new medical colleges attached with existing district/referral hospitals’ five medical colleges are approved at Dumka, Hazaribagh, Palamu, Chaibasa and Koderma districts of Jharkhand which are functional. Further, no proposal for setting up of Medical college has been received from State Government of Jharkhand in the district of Chatra."

"All the administrative and personnel matters related to health human resource lies with the respective State/UT Governments. Under National Health Mission (NHM), Ministry of Health & Family Welfare provides financial and technical support to States/UTs to strengthen their healthcare systems based on the requirements posed by them in their Programme Implementation Plans (PIPs) within their overall resource envelope. Further, National Medical Commission (NMC) while issuing letter of permissions to start a medical college ensures availability of faculty and other required staff as per the their norms through physical assessment of the college," she added.

Fee Structure: 

Regarding the queries regarding the fee structure, the Ministry informed that the fee structures differ from State to State vis-a-vis Government / Private Medical Colleges as per the guidelines issued by concerned State Fee Regulatory Authorities.

Foreign Medical Graduates: 

On the issues faced by the Foreign Medical Graduates, the Ministry informed that the Foreign Medical Graduate Examination (FMGE) is a licensure exam that Indian citizens and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) must pass to practice medicine in India after earning a medical degree from a foreign institution. Further, the NMC vide public notices dated 09.05.2023, 07.12.2023, 07.06.2024 and 19.6.2024 has granted relaxations (including period of internship) and issued clarifications resolving the issues of FMGs reported to NMC due to Covid-19 pandemic/Ukraine-Russia war.

"National Board of Examination in Medical Sciences (NBEMS) offers various post graduate medical fellowship programmes for foreign and Indian medical graduates. Details of courses and criteria for admission thereto are published by NBEMS in information bulletin," added the MoS Health.

Also Read: 49,772 PG Medical seats Available in 81 Specialities, Maximum in MD General Medicine- NMC seat matrix