PM-led Cabinet committee clears 18000 additional PG and UG medical seats

The committee also cleared establishment of 24 medical colleges as announced in the Union Budget

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by prime minister Narendra Modi approved a Rs 14930 crore plan for augmentation of Human Resources for Health and Medical Education schemes. The allocation is to be spent till 2019-20.

The plan is geared towards increasing the availability of doctors in the country and to lessen the gap between the private and the government sector in manpower availability. According to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 3, ensuring healthy lives and promoting the well-being for all at all ages is essential. As per World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations, there should be one doctor for 1,000 population. Adequate availability of human resources in health is a necessary prerequisite for this.

Salient Features of the plan:

a New Medical Colleges:

• Continuation of ongoing scheme to establish 58 new medical colleges attached with existing District/Referral hospitals already approved under Phase-l by 2019-20.
• Selection and establishment of 24 new medical colleges attached with existing District/ Referral hospitals under Phase-lI by 2021-22.
• The locations of proposed 24 new medical colleges in Phase-ll will be selected within the identified underserved areas in Challenge Mode.

An amount of Rs. 5,587.68 crore is proposed for the ongoing scheme under Central share during Phase-I.  Phase-II entails an amount of Rs.3,675 crore to be spent till 2021-22 as central share out of which an amount of Rs.2,600 crore is proposed to be spent till 2019-2020.

In the Union Budget it was announced that at least one medical college will be established for every 3-5 Parliamentary Constituencies and there will be at least one Government medical college in each State.  The location of new medical colleges in Phase-II of the scheme will be selected by the State Government within the identified blocks in a ‘Challenge Mode’.

b Increase of Medical Seats: Continuation of Centrally Sponsored Scheme for Upgradation of existing State Government/Central Government Medical colleges resulting in:

• Increase of 10,000 UG seats by 2020-21 and
• 8,058 PG seats (4,058 in Phase-l by 2018-19 and 4,000 in Phase-ll by 2020-21).

Increase of UG seats entails an amount of Rs.7,795 crore to be spent as central share till 2021-22 out of which an amount of Rs.4,536 crore will be spent till 2019-20.

Increase of PG seats under Phase-II would require Rs.3,024 crore to be spent as central share till 2021-22 out of which Rs.1,700 crore will be spent till 2019-20.

c Nursing Scheme: Continuation and completion of scheme for setting up of:

• 112 Auxiliary Nursing and Midwifery (ANM) Schools and
• 136 General Nursing Midwifery (GNM) Schools by 2019-20 in under-served districts of the country.

This Nursing Scheme will be implemented and completed with an amount of Rs.190 crore till 2019-20 for the schools where work has already been started.

Impact:

The establishment of new medical colleges and increase of MBBS and PG seats would:

1. Increase the availability of health professionals,
2. Check the existing geographical distribution of medical colleges in the country,
3. Promote affordable medical education in the country,
4. Utilise the existing infrastructure of district hospitals, and
5. Improve tertiary care in the Government sector.

List of proposed locations for 24 new Medical Colleges in Phase-II