Goa medical college gets NMC nod for 50 more MBBS seats, intake rises to 250 for 2026-27
Panaji: To promote medical education in Goa, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has recently approved an increase of 50 MBBS seats at Goa Medical College, raising the total number of undergraduate medical seats from 200 to 250 for the 2026-2027 academic year.
Currently, GMC has 200 seats, including 30 seats for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS).
However, this increase comes with certain conditions, as the NMC has directed GMC to rectify specific faculty-related deficiencies identified during the assessment. The college has been given 90 days to address these shortcomings and submit a compliance report, adds Navhind Times
Following this approval, Health Minister Vishwajit Rane described it as a "proud milestone" and a "a big step towards strengthening medical education."
Along with this, the Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant stated “This significant expansion will create greater opportunities for aspiring medical students, especially Goan youth and further strengthen Goa’s medical education ecosystem and healthcare human resources."
Meanwhile, a senior doctor at GMC stated that while the state does need another medical college, the government must ensure that the quality of training there matches that of GMC. Many people from Goa have to go outside the state for medical studies because they are unable to secure admission to GMC.
There is only one medical college in the state, while the proposal to open another college, despite being approved in principle, has not yet moved forward.
Apart from this, in 2024, the NMC granted approval to GMC to increase its MBBS seats from 150 to 200 for the 2024-25 academic year. In 2019-2020, GMC's intake capacity had been raised from 150 to 180 seats.
According to the TOI media news report, Rane informed the Legislative Assembly last year about a proposal to increase MBBS seats from 200 to 250. He stated that this would create new opportunities for Goa's youth in the healthcare sector.
