The Tamil Nadu government is expecting a nod from the National Medical Commission (NMC) to start undergraduate programmes in 11 new medical colleges from 2021 and has expedited the process for infrastructure works, said Health Secretary J Radhakrishnan. The Union government, in order to increase the number of medical colleges in the country, had previously given permission to start 11 new medical colleges in districts including Ramanathapuram, Virudhunagar, Dindigul, Ariyalur, Krishnagiri, The Nilgiris, Kallakurichi, Tiruvallur, Tirupur and Namakkal.
According to reports, the Health Secretary said that the state government has expedited efforts to ready the infrastructure for first year students, after he attended a meeting held by Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian with office-bearers of doctors association. The posts for the college have also been already created, he added. The state government is expecting an inspection by the NMC next month.
The Health Secretary said the NMC has criteria in terms of infrastructure and all the requirements should be completed before the inspection. The state government has therefore expedited the work along with speeding up the works for government medical college hospitals, he said. The NMC's infrastructure criteria include lecture halls, administrative buildings, among others, for first year students.
The Health Secretary said the state is also ensuring that basic facilities, including hostels for students and residential facilities for professors, are ready. The government is expecting to receive approval by this year. After the first inspection if there are any insufficiencies, he said the government would rectify them in the second inspection.
During the interim budget, the Tamil Nadu government allotted Rs 2,47,093 crore for the colleges. The increased medical seats will help in building tertiary healthcare to most of the districts in the state.
Meanwhile, Health Minister Ma Subramanian said that the doctors have demanded an increase in pay. Taking note of this, he said that he will discuss with the Chief Minister.