Odisha gets 318 additional PG medical seats in 14 departments
The National Medical Commission has approved 318 new postgraduate seats, increasing the state's total to 938 across various institutions.
The National Medical Commission (NMC) has approved 318 additional postgraduate (PG) medical seats across 14 departments in Odisha, according to reports by Prabhat Khabar and Times Now. This increase brings the total number of PG medical seats in the state's government institutions from 620 to 938.
The approval allows five new government medical colleges to launch PG courses with 153 sanctioned seats. Dharanidhar Medical College and Hospital in Keonjhar received 44 seats, while Pabitra Mohan Pradhan Government Medical College and Hospital in Talcher was allotted 32 seats. SLN Medical College and Hospital in Koraput received 28 seats, Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati Government Medical College and Hospital in Phulbani was given 27 seats, and the Government Medical College and Hospital in Sundargarh received 22 seats.
Existing institutions also saw increases. Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College in Baripada rose from 20 to 53 seats, Bhima Bhoi Medical College in Balangir went from 10 to 54, and Fakir Mohan Medical College in Balasore increased from 8 to 54. SCB Medical College in Cuttack received 17 additional seats, while VIMSAR in Burla, PGIMER and Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar, and Acharya Harihar Post Graduate Institute of Cancer received 11, 11, and 3 seats respectively.
The new seats span departments including Anatomy, Anaesthesiology, Biochemistry, Community Medicine, ENT, General Medicine, General Surgery, Microbiology, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Paediatrics, Pathology, Psychiatry, and Respiratory Medicine.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Mukesh Mahaling said the expansion would help train specialist doctors closer to underserved regions and improve healthcare capacity in smaller towns. He noted that the development marks a significant step for medical education in the state.