IIT Kharagpur set to launch MD programme, awaits NMC approval, MBBS on hold
West Bengal - The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur is set to enter the field of medical education by launching the Doctor of Medicine (MD) programme. The institute is awaiting approval from the National Medical Commission NMC.
IIT recently presented this plan to its Board of Governors. An official informed that the institute is ready with all the paperwork and will apply for approval when the NMC application portal opens.
In this regard, speaking to The Indian Express, the IIT Kharagpur Director Suman Chakraborty said “Considering the availability of human resources, doctors, other medical experts, and experts in medical technology research at IIT Kharagpur and also the advisors of the IIT’s medical programme who are highly qualified, it has been inferred that a PG medical programme would be the right choice for IIT Kharagpur and that it would give a new direction for technology-empowered advanced medical studies and research”.
The practical training for MD students will take place at the Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, located just outside the IIT campus. Chakraborty explained that after the NMC evaluation, IIT Kharagpur is ready to launch the program if it receives the green light. It will have 10-20 seats.
Additionally, Chakraborty mentioned that the medical college is also part of IIT Kharagpur. He said, "The hospital is an independent legal entity. The hospital activity has been ramped up to meet the requirements for the medical education programme. It was running in a complete OPD (outpatient department) mode. Now it has an inpatient department also. That is a significant transition”.
Meanwhile, the Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Institute of Medical Sciences and Research (SPMSH) recently successfully conducted its first surgery at the newly operational operation theatre of its superspeciality hospital. The procedure, led by Dr R K Behera, a senior surgeon, involved the removal of a foreign body under emergent conditions. The patient was discharged the same day. With the operation theatre functional, the SPMSH is set to rapidly scale up towards a hospital with a 220-bed mission-mode inpatient department, expanding its surgical and speciality care capabilities.
Further, a senior IIT official said the institute had put on hold its plan to launch an MBBS programme owing to the lack of adequate infrastructure.
