PG medical seats: AP to get nearly 300 more

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA’s) approval for continuation of the centrally-sponsored scheme for strengthening and up-gradation of state government medical colleges will generate nearly 300 additional post-graduate medical seats in Andhra Pradesh. In all, the decision would pave way for additional 4,000 PG seats across the country.

The continuation of the scheme at a total cost of Rs 13.5 billion will result in an increase of about 4,000 seats, with proposed central assistance share of Rs 11.24 billion and state and Union Territory share of Rs 2.26 billion.

The funding pattern will be 75:25 by central and state governments. Out of Rs 11.24 billion, an amount of Rs 6.8 billion has already been released to 72 government medical colleges. The scheme was launched in 11th Final Year Plan in 2009-10.

According to sources in Department of Medical Education (DME), the PG medical seats would add up in the fifteen government medical colleges- including the four Rajiv Gandhi Institutes of Medical Sciences at Ongole, Srikakulam, Kadapa and Adilabad.

At present, a total of 2,532 seats (1,190 in government and 1,342 in private colleges) (other than dental PG) are available in the state.

“It depends upon the courses and availability of faculty. We cannot exactly say that a particular college gets particular number of seats at this juncture. Since the Union Cabinet approves the continuation of the scheme of strengthening the government medical colleges, focus should be both on infrastructure and faculty,” a member of Medical Council of India told The Hans India.

But the medical undergraduates still feel that this

increase is still far less comparing to number of students pass out annually.

“Not less than 5,500 medical graduates have been coming out every year but they have just 2,500 PG seats. This means not even half of them could get a chance to do PG here. Although nearly 400 people have been joining elsewhere by appearing for JIPMER or AIIMS or some other tests, still there is a shortfall. Government shall seriously address this problem since specialization starts only after completion of MBBS,” Dr Sneha Madhavi, a medical graduate felt.

“Yes, we agree that there is dearth of skilled faculty. One way to address this issue is to share the existing limited number of professors by two or three colleges. The state government or the NTR Health University can hire specialist professors from institutes outside the state to teach us till such a time the faculty crunch is addressed,” Dr Abhilash, a medico from Gandhi opined.