India’s Medical Education Sees Rapid Growth: MBBS Seats Up by 110%, Medical Colleges by 82% since 2014

The Lok Sabha was informed that India has seen remarkable progress in its medical education sector since 2014. The country has witnessed an 82% increase in the number of medical colleges, growing from 387 to 704, and an impressive 110% increase in MBBS seats, rising from 51,348 to 1,07,948 during this period. Furthermore, there has been a substantial 117% rise in the number of post-graduate (PG) medical seats, from 31,185 to 67,802.

Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya highlighted the government’s efforts in supporting the establishment of new medical colleges in underserved areas and aspirational districts. A total of 101 medical colleges have been approved under the centrally-sponsored scheme, with one such college approved in Assam.

The government’s initiatives also aimed at upgrading existing medical colleges to enhance medical education standards. Through various schemes, support has been provided to add thousands of MBBS and PG seats in different colleges across the country.

Additionally, the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, was introduced to improve access to quality medical education and ensure the availability of skilled medical professionals throughout India. The Act has led to several positive changes, including recognizing the Diplomate of National Board qualification for faculty appointments and increasing the age limit for certain medical college positions to 70 years.

Furthermore, the NMC Act has relaxed norms for setting up medical colleges, rationalized the teacher-student ratio to increase PG seats, and framed guidelines for determining fees in private medical institutions and deemed-to-be universities.

India’s medical education sector has seen significant expansion and improvements, contributing to better healthcare access and quality across the nation.