Thousands of Indian students go abroad every year to pursue medical education. An inadequate number of medical seats in India is one of the reasons for students going abroad.
For the 2017-18 academic year, there are just over 67,000 medical seats and over 27,000 dental seats across the country. This translates to less than six medical seats per one lakh population and fewer than three dental seats per one lakh population.
Most Number of Seats in Karnataka
It has to be noted that though there is an all-India quota in NEET, a large number of seats are still reserved under the state quota. Hence, the number of seats in a particular state are important.
Of all the states, Karnataka with 8,845 has the most medical seats on offer, followed by 7,270 in Maharashtra. A total of 18 states/Union Territories have more than 1,000 seats each. Eight states/UTs have fewer than 500 seats each. Tamil Nadu has the most number of medical seats in government colleges, followed by Maharashtra.
Three states – Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland – do not have a single medical college.
Less Than 6 Medical Seats Per One Lakh Population
At an all-India level, there are fewer than six seats per one lakh population. Of all the states/UTs, Puducherry has more than 96 seats per one lakh population because of the presence of JIPMER and relatively lower population.
Of the states/UTs with more than one crore population, Karnataka has more than 14 medical seats per one lakh population, the highest in the country.
Only two states – Kerala and Telangana – have more than 10 seats per one lakh population.
Of the bigger states, only Bihar and Jharkhand have less than two seats per one lakh population. This is four times lower compared to the national average.
More Than 27,000 Dental Seats on Offer
In addition to the medical seats, there are more than 27,000 dental seats across the country. Karnataka, with 3,520, leads in the number of seats, followed by Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu. Eleven states/UTs have more than 1,000 dental seats each; 13 states/UTs have fewer than 500 dental seats.
Six states – Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Tripura, Sikkim, Nagaland – do not have a single dental college.
On an average, there are fewer than three dental seats per one lakh population at an all-India level. Bihar and Assam are at the bottom of the list when it comes to number of seats per one lakh people. Both these states have less than 0.5 seats per one lakh population. Five states have fewer than one seat per one lakh population.
(This piece was first published in FACTLY and has been republished with permission.)
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