Govt approves over 11,000 MBBS seats, more than 8,900 PG seats for 2025-26: health ministry

The Union government has cleared the addition of thousands of medical seats for the 2025 to 2026 academic year, while also expanding the number of medical colleges across the country, the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare informed the Rajya Sabha.

According to information provided in a written reply, 11,682 MBBS seats and 8,967 postgraduate seats have been approved for the upcoming academic session.

The figures were shared by the National Medical Commission and include seats in medical colleges as well as institutions such as AIIMS and other Institutes of National Importance.

Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel told the Rajya Sabha that India’s medical education capacity has grown significantly over the past decade. The number of medical colleges has increased from 387 in 2014 to 818 currently.

During the same period, undergraduate medical seats have expanded from 51,348 to 128,976, while postgraduate seats have risen from 31,185 to 85,020, according to the data placed before Parliament.

The ministry said the National Medical Commission reviews applications submitted by medical colleges each year for establishing new institutions or increasing the number of undergraduate and postgraduate seats. These applications are filed online and evaluated within the same academic year.

The approval process is handled by the Medical Assessment and Rating Board under the commission. The board determines the method of inspection before granting permission to institutions.

Assessments may include verification of digital documents, Aadhaar-based attendance records, hospital management information system data, photographs, and video feeds.

In some cases, the board may also conduct surprise physical inspections or hold video conferencing sessions.

Based on its evaluation, the commission issues either a letter of permission or a letter of disapproval in accordance with regulations governing the establishment of medical colleges and the standards required for undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses.

The ministry also highlighted a centrally sponsored scheme aimed at setting up medical colleges attached to existing district or referral hospitals, particularly in underserved and aspirational districts.

Under this program, 157 medical colleges have been approved in three phases at a total cost of ₹41,332.41 crore.

Out of this amount, the central government’s share is ₹26,715.84 crore, of which ₹23,246.10 crore has already been released, the ministry said in its reply to the Rajya Sabha.

Funding under the scheme follows a 90:10 ratio between the Centre and states for northeastern and special category states, while other states follow a 60:40 sharing pattern.

The ministry added that it regularly works with the National Medical Commission to ensure that applications and appeals related to medical seats are processed on time and that approved seat matrices are published before the start of counseling.