THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If there is a 300-bed hospital and five acres of land, the state government will give NOC for a new medical college. Nursing and paramedical colleges will also be allowed. Earlier, the government's policy was not to have new colleges in the self-financing sector. The University of Health Sciences will invite applications shortly. Approval of the Medical Commission can be obtained only with the permission of the state government and the Health University.
The government's policy change came after 'Kerala Kaumudi' reported that students were going to 51 countries to study MBBS. Students from Kerala are going to even smaller countries such as Nepal and the Caribbean island of Curaçao to pursue an MBBS.
The Medical Commission has reduced the requirement of 25 acres of land to start a college to five acres. The hospital and college may be located on two campuses within ten kilometres. Initially, a 300-bed hospital is enough to get 100 MBBS seats. By the time the course gets completed there should be 450 beds.
Nursing colleges will be allotted to those with good hospital facilities. More paramedical colleges will be allowed.
MBBS