100 new medical colleges in 5 years by upgrading district hospitals

New Delhi: The Union Health Ministry has drawn a proposal to set up 100 new medical colleges by 2027 by upgrading district hospitals under the fourth phase of a scheme that aims to boost the availability of human resources for the health sector.

The colleges will be set up under the centrally-sponsored scheme for the "establishment of new medical colleges by upgrading district or referral hospitals" at an estimated cost of Rs 325 crore per college on the basis of central and state share of 60:40, official sources said. The funding pattern for the northeastern and special category states is in the ratio of 90:10 between the Centre and the state.

The Department of Expenditure has approved the proposal of the Health ministry, and a cabinet note in this regard has already been drafted, official sources said. In the last three phases, 157 medical colleges were approved, and 93 of them have become functional while others are at different stages of construction.

These proposed 100 medical colleges will be set up in 100 districts which have a population of more than 10 lakhs and where there is no private or government medical college. "The proposal to set up 100 medical colleges by upgrading district hospitals in the fourth phase of the scheme has been approved by the Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC), after which a Cabinet note has been prepared," an official source said.

Further, the centrally-sponsored scheme has a new component of providing Rs 10 crore each for setting up of nursing colleges attached with the existing 157 medical colleges already approved in the first three phases, the source added. But this will require amendment in the existing minimum standard requirement regulations of the NMC in which such attachment of medical and nursing colleges is not allowed.