Around 40 medical colleges in India have lost their accreditation in recent months due to a failure to meet the requirements imposed by the National Medical Commission (NMC). According to official sources, these colleges were found to be non-compliant with the stipulated rules during Commission inspections. Vulnerabilities were detected in CCTV cameras, Aadhaar-linked biometric attendance protocols, and faculty rolls. Furthermore, roughly 100 more medical colleges in states such as Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Assam, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Puducherry, and West Bengal are expected to experience similar effects. This article investigates the reasons behind the denial, the influence on the medical education system, and the perspectives of specialists in the subject.

Increase in the number of medical colleges

According to government data, the number of medical colleges has increased significantly since 2014. Bharati Pravin Pawar, Minister of State for Health, announced in February that the number of medical colleges has increased by 71 percent, from 387 in 2014 to 660 today. Furthermore, MBBS seats increased by 97 percent, from 51,348 to 101,043, while PG seats increased by 110 percent, from 31,185 to 65,335, within the same time period. The government put these measures in place to solve the country’s doctor shortage.

Initiatives by the Government to Improve Medical Education

The government has taken many initiatives to boost the number of medical seats in the country in order to meet the growing demand for doctors. The officially supported project for the development of new medical colleges by renovating district/referral hospitals is one of the primary efforts. This scheme has already made 94 of the 157 accredited colleges operational. These initiatives seek to increase the availability of healthcare experts while also improving the overall healthcare infrastructure.

Expert Opinions on the Derecognition

Concerns have been expressed by experts in the area about the NMC’s approach to derecognizing  colleges. They claim that the Commission mainly relies on the Aadhaar-enabled biometric attendance system, which only counts professors on duty between the hours of 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. Doctors’ working hours, on the other hand, are not set, as they frequently have to work during emergency and night shifts. The NMC’s rigorous working hour guideline has created a problem that experts believe should be addressed. They emphasise that micromanaging medical colleges is impracticable, and that the NMC should be flexible in dealing with such issues.

Another source of complaint raised by experts is the inconsistency between decertifying colleges for faults and permitting students to enrol in those same schools. This difference not only calls the NMC’s decision-making process into doubt, but it also tarnishes India’s global reputation as the largest supplier of doctors. Experts are concerned that incidents like this would damage trust in Indian doctors around the world.

Tamil Nadu and one in Puducherry are among the 40 Medical colleges

Three medical colleges in Tamil Nadu and one in Puducherry are among the 40 colleges that have lost their accreditation.

• Government Stanley Medical College Hospital in Chennai
• K. A. P. Viswanathan Government Medical College in Trichy
• Government Dharmapuri Medical College and Hospital are the three Tamil Nadu colleges.
• The Indira Gandhi Medical College and Research Institute (IGMC & RI) is the Puducherry-based institute.

As part of the NMC crackdown, one of Arunachal Pradesh’s centuries-old medical colleges lost its accreditation. More than 150 medical colleges are still under inspection and face losing their commission certification if they fail to meet the NMC’s standards.