Historic surge in medical seats in India

Kerala tops the list of states for student exodus to foreign countries for higher studies. The lion’s share of the students seeks better academic prospects in countries like China, Russia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Poland. The shortage of medical seats in India and the difficulty in getting admission are the main reasons for students searching for greener pastures. Not only the students, but also Kerala is robbed of the revenue of the five-year course.

In this context, the decision of the National Medical Commission to allocate 10,650 additional MBBS seats in medical colleges in the country for the academic year 2025-26 is highly commendable. The increase in medical seats in Kerala is 649. In addition, 41 new medical colleges have been approved in the country. Applications for 3500 medical PG seats have also been approved. With this, the number of medical seats in the country has increased to 137,600. PG seats have also increased to 67,000.

Although 700 new seats were allocated for 10 medical colleges in Kerala, the numbers came to 649 due to the reduction of 51 seats in two colleges. Of this, 50 seats were reduced in the Palakkad Institute of Medical Sciences. This reduction could have been avoided if the relevant authorities had taken steps to comply with the National Medical Commission norms in time. Thrissur Jubilee Mission and Kozhikode Malabar colleges have received 200 more seats each. Thodupuzha Al-Azhar, Thiru. Uthradam Thirunal, and Kollam Travancore Medical Colleges have also received 150 more seats each. Since admission to at least half of these seats will be on merit, it will be possible for many students to study medicine at a relatively low cost.

The number of seats should be increased not on the basis of population but on the basis of the excellence of medical education in each state and compliance with the standards of the National Medical Commission. While a medical student passing out from a state can work anywhere in the country, any move to limit the number of medical seats in states on the basis of population should be opposed. Moreover, priority should be given to allocating more medical colleges to the backward districts of the country. Along with increasing the number of seats, steps should be taken to protect the excellence of medical education. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced in his Independence Day speech in 2024 that 75,000 medical seats would be added in the country in the next five years. The current increase in seats is in line with this announcement.