Biggest Ever Government MBBS Seat Increase In India: Over 2,700 Medical Seats Added In 25 Colleges In One Year

More than 2,700 seats will be added in the 2019-20 academic session in the 25 new government medical colleges. This will be the biggest addition of the medical seats in government colleges in a single year, reports Times of India.

According to the report, as many as 2,750 seats will be created in the 25 new government medical colleges in the academic year 2019-20. The process of government expanding the medical seats has reportedly accelerated in the last two year with the establishment of new colleges as well as increasing of seats in existing institutions with the help of central funding.

Following the expansion of medical seats in 2019, there are now 70,978 MBBS seats in 529 colleges in India. Of the total medical colleges, 269 colleges with 35,688 seats are run by the government while remaining 260 colleges with 35,290 seats are in the private sector.

However, the increase in number of seats brings with it another challenge of finding the teaching faculty for the medical students. Despite the government repeatedly diluting the faculty requirements, the inadequate availability of faculty remains a stumbling block to the expansion of the medical education.

Speaking to the TOI, chairman of Medical Council of India’s (MCI) board of governors and member of Niti Aayog Dr Vinod Paul said that measures such as increasing the retirement age and getting those retired from the armed forces to come back to teaching had already been initiated to address the issue.