NMC population cap for medical colleges- Which states will lose the most?

New Delhi: The impact of the National Medical Commission's (NMC) rule of 100 MBBS seats per million population is going to be faced by several States across the Country.

Apart from the Southern States including Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh; several other States and Union Territories such as Manipur, Himachal Pradesh, Goa, Chandigarh, Puducherry, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli are also going to be affected by the new rules.

As per the total number of available seats in Gujarat in comparison to its projected population, the UG medical quota in this State is also saturated and the new rules might affect the State's plan of adding three brownfield medical colleges in Bitad, Khambhaliya, and Veraval, adds TOI.

NMC capped the total number of MBBS seats in a particular State/UT through its recently released "Guidelines for Under Graduate Courses under Establishment of New Medical Institutions, Starting of New Medical Courses, Increase of Seats for Existing Courses & Assessment and Rating Regulations, 2023".

Releasing these guidelines, the Apex Medical Commission prescribed a ratio of 100 MBBS seats per 10 lakh population. These Guidelines mentioned, "After A.Y. 2023-24, Letter of permission (LOP) for starting of new medical colleges shall be issued only for annual intake capacity of 50/100/150 seats; Provided that medical college shall follow the ratio of 100 MBBS seats for 10 lakh population in that state/ U.T."

The Daily adds that the number of medical seats per 10 lakh population is more than the prescribed 100 seats in these States and UTs. In the case of Puducherry, there are 1,329 MBBS seats per million population. The number is 224 in Telangana, 173 in Karnataka, and 151 in Tamil Nadu. Most of these States also have a healthy doctor-patient ratio as well.

On the other hand, the number of MBBS seats per million population is very much lower than 100 in States like Bihar, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. In the case of Bihar, the State has a total number of 2,665 MBBS seats while the State has a very large population. Considering the MBBS seats per million population ratio, there are just 21 medical seats per 10 lakh population in Bihar.

The ratio is not promising in Uttar Pradesh as well, where there are 41 MBBS seats available per million population. These States also have an unhealthy doctor-patient ratio. Taking the NMC rule into consideration, it is possible for these States to add more medical colleges and medical seats to the seat matrix.

As per the latest media report by the Times of India, Gujarat will also be affected by this rule and its plans of adding three brownfield medical colleges in Botad, Khambhaliya, and Veraval are likely to go in limbo. There are a total of 7,050 undergraduate medical seats in Gujarat as of October 2023. Among these 6,850 MBBS seats are available in thirty-nine state-run and private medical colleges and another 200 seats are available in two institutes with 100% national admission quota i.e. AIIMS Rajkot and Sumandeep Vidyapith in Waghodia.

Commenting on the matter, a senior official associated with medical education in Gujarat told TOI, “The state’s UG medical quota is saturated if one considers the state’s population at 7 crores. Gujarat has added four new medical colleges in the past few years, increasing the number of seats by 600. But with the new rule, chances of further addition seem bleak.”

The Daily adds that experts have mentioned that Gujarat has fewer medical seats when compared to States like Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Rajasthan. This is why the State decided to set up one medical college in every district. Experts opined that the NMC move could ultimately result in a situation where the medical aspirants will move to other states.

Sources close to the development added, “In places like Dahod and Kutch, the state government had collaborated with existing players to set up medical colleges and hospitals. In three of the proposed colleges, the government is already in talks with a total of 11 applicants where trusts can run hospitals,”

Meanwhile, amidst the opposition regarding the new rules, NMC stood by its decision to cap the number of MBBS seats in a particular State/UT by prescribing 100 MBBS seats per 10 lakh population ratio.

Issuing a Press Release in this regard, the Apex Medical Commission informed that this decision was taken after considering the observations of various courts regarding the crowding of medical colleges.

The Commission further opined that this decision of capping the MBBS seats is expected to reduce regional disparities in the availability of healthcare professionals. NMC mentioned in the release that "With this ratio there will be still potential for addition of about 40,000 MBBS seats in country if the medical colleges are evenly distributed."

Also Read: 100 MBBS Seats for 10 Lakh Population Ratio: NMC Stands by its Decision, issues statement