NEW DELHI: The National Medical Commission (NMC) has informed the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare that more than 2,000 medical seats fall vacant in government medical colleges across the country every year. 2,849 MBBS seats were lying vacant in the academic year 2024-25. This figure excludes the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and the Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research (JIPMER).

Experts say the reason for the high number of vacant seats is the complicated admission process. Medical colleges have to close the admission process before the seats are filled to meet the deadline set by the NMC. Seat demand is low in medical colleges in rural areas and new colleges.

MBBS seats have been increased by 39% in the last five years to reduce the number of Indian students going abroad for medical studies. In 2024-25, there were 1,15,900 MBBS seats in the country, compared to 83,275 seats in 2020-21. The number of seats in Kerala has increased to 4705.

Vacant seats
 2020-21 : 2,012
 2022-23 : 4,146
 2023-24 : 2,959
 2024-25 : 2849