Health ministry approves 4000 PG seats in medical colleges, hospitals

The Centre has given its approval over 4,000 Post Graduate seats in medical colleges and hospitals across the country for the academic session 2017-18, Union Health Minister J P Nadda said on Thursday. The health minister dubbed it an "all-time record number" which would take the total number of Post Graduate (PG) seats in the country up to 35,117.

"This will further boost our resolve to strengthen tertiary care and improve the medical education in the country," he said while thanking Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Health Minister's remarks came after the Centre had announced the creation of additional 5,000 PG medical seats every year during this year's budget with an aim to bolster availability of specialist doctors at secondary and tertiary levels.

Noting that out of the total increase, 2,046 seats are in medical colleges, Nadda said the government had also decided to amend the teacher-student ratio in clinical subjects in government medical colleges with an aim to increase PG seats.

"This change alone has resulted in the creation of 1,137extra seats in 71 colleges. Many others out of the total of212 government colleges are sending their proposals and it is expected that at least 1,000 more seats can be added during the month of March 2017," Nadda said.

This includes Diplomate of National Board (DNB) seats, equivalent to MD/MS, which have increased by 2,147 in the last one year, he said. Nadda said there had been a total addition of 4,193 PGseats in the country so far, and a further addition of more than 1000 seats is likely during March 2017.

"The budget announcement of adding 5,000 PG medical seats in the country is thus likely to be achieved soon," he said. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley while presenting the UnionBudget this year had said that to strengthen secondary and tertiary levels of health care, adequate availability of specialist doctors was needed.

"We have decided to take steps to create additional 5,000Post Graduate seats per annum. In addition, steps will be taken to roll out DNB courses in big district hospitals, strengthen PG teaching in select ESI and municipal corporation hospitals and encourage reputed private hospitals to start DNBcourses," he had said.

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