 Early Times Report
Jammu, Oct 15: Jammu and Kashmir’s medical education sector has made major strides, with MBBS seats tripling from 500 in 2018 to 1,525 in 2025.
Yet, despite the surge, infrastructure and faculty gaps continue to limit full expansion.
In 2018, the UT had only two government colleges—GMC Jammu and GMC Srinagar—along with SKIMS Medical College and the private ASCOMS Jammu.
The first major boost came in 2019 when the National Medical Commission (NMC) approved 100 seats each for GMC Anantnag and GMC Baramulla.
Over the next few years, successive additions under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) quota and new government colleges steadily increased intake.
By 2024-25, J&K had around 1,185 MBBS seats, including 100 in ASCOMS.
In September this year, NMC approved another 190 seats across GMC Baramulla, Doda, Kathua, Jammu, and Srinagar—raising the government tally to 1,375.
The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME) in Katra received 50 seats, taking the private total to 150.
However, the approvals were far below the 450-seat proposal sought by the Health and Medical Education Department.
Officials cited pending infrastructure upgrades and faculty shortages as key reasons for NMC’s limited sanction, though they remain hopeful of meeting norms in the coming years. |
