Despite Increase In MBBS Seats, 2,849 Remain Vacant In 2024, Minister Tells Lok Sabha
The number of MBBS seats rose from 83,275 in 2020–21 to 1,15,900 by 2024–25, marking a major expansion in medical education capacity.
NEW DELHI: Despite a significant 39% increase in the MBBS seats over the recent years, a considerable number of undergraduate medical seats remain vacant across India, data available with the National Medical Commission (NMC) suggest.
The data was presented in the Lok Sabha on August 1 by Anupriya Patel, Minister of State in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in response to an unstarred question asked by TDP MP Putta Mahesh Kumar.
| Academic year | Vacant UG seats (Excluding AIIMS & JIPMER) |
| 2021-22 | 2012 |
| 2022-23 | 4146 |
| 2023-24 | 2959 |
| 2024-25 | 2849 |
The number of MBBS seats rose from 83,275 in 2020–21 to 1,15,900 by 2024–25. However, the number of vacant UG seats (excluding AIIMS and JIPMER) peaked at 4,146 in 2022–23, before witnessing a gradual decline to 2,849 in 2024–25, the Minister said.
The government attributes this expansion to the establishment of new medical colleges and improvements in infrastructure and faculty availability. To ensure quality, the Minimum Standard Requirement Regulations, 2023, have been introduced by NMC. These regulations outline essential standards regarding infrastructure, clinical materials, faculty, and necessary facilities required for establishing and maintaining medical colleges.
The government data showed the number of medical seats in India across the country in 2020-21 and 2024-25. UP, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Gujarat top the list.
| S.No. | State/UT | MBBS Seats (2020-21) | MBBS Seats (2024-25) |
| 1 | Andaman & Nicobar Islands | 100 | 114 |
| 2 | Andhra Pradesh | 5210 | 6585 |
| 3 | Arunachal Pradesh | 50 | 100 |
| 4 | Assam | 1050 | 1700 |
| 5 | Bihar | 2140 | 2995 |
| 6 | Chandigarh | 150 | 150 |
| 7 | Chhattisgarh | 1345 | 2105 |
| 8 | Dadra & Nagar Haveli | 150 | 177 |
| 9 | Delhi | 1422 | 1346 |
| 10 | Goa | 180 | 200 |
| 11 | Gujarat | 5700 | 7000 |
| 12 | Haryana | 1660 | 2185 |
| 13 | Himachal Pradesh | 920 | 920 |
| 14 | Jammu & Kashmir | 1135 | 1385 |
| 15 | Jharkhand | 780 | 1055 |
| 16 | Karnataka | 9345 | 12194 |
| 17 | Kerala | 4105 | 4705 |
| 18 | Madhya Pradesh | 3585 | 4900 |
| 19 | Maharashtra | 9000 | 11844 |
| 20 | Manipur | 225 | 525 |
| 21 | Meghalaya | 50 | 150 |
| 22 | Mizoram | 100 | 100 |
| 23 | Nagaland | 0 | 100 |
| 24 | Orissa | 1950 | 2675 |
| 25 | Puducherry | 1530 | 1873 |
| 26 | Punjab | 1425 | 1699 |
| 27 | Rajasthan | 4200 | 6279 |
| 28 | Sikkim | 50 | 150 |
| 29 | Tamil Nadu | 8000 | 12000 |
| 30 | Telangana | 5240 | 8915 |
| 31 | Tripura | 225 | 400 |
| 32 | Uttar Pradesh | 7428 | 12325 |
| 33 | Uttarakhand | 825 | 1350 |
| 34 | West Bengal | 4000 | 5699 |
In the Lok Sabha, the government has mentioned the steps taken to increase the medical seats in colleges and institutes.
Under the Centrally sponsored scheme for establishing new medical colleges, district and referral hospitals are being upgraded, particularly in underserved and aspirational districts. Out of the 157 approved medical colleges under this scheme, 131 are functional.
Efforts are also underway to enhance the capacity of existing state and central government medical colleges through a separate centrally sponsored scheme. This aims at strengthening infrastructure and increasing the number of MBBS and postgraduate (PG) seats.
Under the upgradation of the government medical colleges by the construction of Super Speciality Blocks as part of the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY), 75 projects have been approved, of which 71 have been completed.
Under the Central sector scheme for establishing new All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), 22 AIIMS have been approved, and undergraduate courses have commenced in 19 of them.
Comments are closed.