Patiala, Amritsar medical colleges to retain 200 MBBS seats
MCI re-approves 50 more MBBS seats to medical colleges in Patiala, Amritsar – Medical council of India has re-approved the Punjab government-run medical colleges in Patiala and Amritsar with 50 extended medical seats for MBBS Course for the academic session 2019-20.
Earlier in March, the MCI after receiving an assessment report in which it found that these medical colleges has a shortage of teaching faculty – 23% in Patiala college and 16% in Amritsar college warned the state government that it will decrease the seats in these colleges to 150 each. MCI gave them month’s time to hire the required staff.
However, the MCI again approved the extended seats after the compliance verification assessment reports about the ongoing recruitment process submitted by the Government Medical College (GMC) Amritsar and GMC Patiala.
MCI before giving permission to medical colleges for retaining their 200 MBBS seats had taken into consideration the observation of member of the Undergraduate Expert Group, who was appointed by the MCI Board of Governors’ and also took an undertaking from the Additional Chief Secretary (Health) Satish Chandra in May besides considering the Compliance Verification Report.
The state government had recently promoted some assistant professors to the rank of professors in order to fill the vacancies. Punjab Government promoted 41 Punjab Civil Medical Services (PCMS) doctors to the post of Assistant Professor that helped overcome a staff shortage.
Satish Chandra, the Additional Chief Secretary of Health said that the state government had already completed the recruitment process under the promotion quota while the interview for direct-quota was still underway.
Meanwhile, the Punjab Civil Medical Services (PCMS) doctors association and Punjab State Medical and Teachers Association has demanded the Punjab government to abolish the filling of the posts of Professors and Associate Professors under direct quota and fill the same under promotion quota only