Medical seats of private colleges in AP and Telangana go to highest bidder

Hyderabad: Cost of seats in private medical colleges has skyrocketed this year as well with the price tag touching Rs 65 to Rs 70 lakh. PG medical seats breached the Rs 1-crore mark this year, surpassing the average price last year.

Counselling to PG medical seats in the two states began on Wednesday at the NTR University of Health Sciences in Vijayawada. Though seats are to be allotted in a transparent manner, they are sold at obscenely high prices to the highest bidder. Bifurcation of the state has also played a role in the development. “When parents are willing to spend so much money, a little more money to keep them close is not seen as a problem,” a negotiator said.

In Telangana, MBBS seats are selling for about Rs 60 lakh on an average. In AP, the going rate for the same is Rs 70 lakh. Colleges even auction their seats before the beginning of the actual academic year at slightly lower rates. “If you want to book a seat in advance, it comes at a price of Rs 40 lakh, but one has to pay a year in advance,” a negotiator revealed.