Chennai: The Union health ministry has in principle agreed to the upgradation of existing state and Central government medical colleges in different states to increase the number of MBBS seats which could meet India’s growing demand for doctors.
The move, according to sources, will benefit Tamil Nadu also as the high-level empowered committee of the ministry has agreed to a proposal which plans to increase MBBS seats at the Government Medical College, Coimbatore,from 150 to 250; at the Government Medical College, Kanyakumari, from 100 to 150; the Government Medical College, Tirunelveli, from 150 to 250 and at the Government Medical College, Madurai, from 155 to 250.
With the Medical Council of India granting permission for a new government college at the 400-bed government multi super-specialty hospital at Omandurar estate, the state government will now be able to admit about 100 students at the institute.
The Omandurar hospital boasts of air-conditioned wards with twin-sharing and triple-sharing facilities. It also has about 14 dedicated operation theatres, laboratories, CT and MRI scan machines and other state-of-the-art equipment.
“There is facility at Omandurar for converting a building into classrooms, laboratory and various departments,” an official said. Besides Tamil Nadu, the committee has increased the seats for Punjab, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
