No basics mean fewer medical PG seats for region

NAGPUR: Lack of basic infrastructure, necessary for even undergraduate seats, has led to Medical Council of India (MCI) refusal to post graduate seats in two major government colleges of region, the Indira Gandhi Government Medical College (IGGMC) Nagpur, and the Shri Vasantrao Naik Government Medical College at Yavatmal. Vidarbha has lost some 21 PG medical seats in various colleges in government and private sectors.
The Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College (JNMC), Sawangi (Meghe) Wardha, has also not been granted an increase in seats in Orthopaedics and Medicine. IGGMC as well as GMC Yavatmal have not been granted any increase at all in the PG seats. IGGMC has lost seven seats, one each in pathology, ENT, Obstetrics and Gynaecology (OBG), anaesthesiology, ophthalmology, radio-diagnosis and paediatrics while the GMC Yavatmal has lost seats in ophthalmology, OBG, paediatrics and pathology. IGGMC's radio-diagnosis issue was deferred in the PG committee meeting.
Blood forms the most important part of treatment and naturally a blood component separation facility is a basic requirement. Both these colleges (IGGMC being the oldest of region) do not have it. This single shortcoming is behind loss of all seats in different subjects.
Though the Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH) Nagpur managed to get an increase of 11 seats, it lost six other seats in preventive and social medicine (PSM) also called community medicine (CM), paediatrics, skin and venereal diseases, medicine and anaesthesiology.
Of the two private colleges in region, NKP Salve Institute of Medical Sciences (NKPSIMS) in city and JNMC in Wardha only JNMC has been refused an increase in orthopaedics and medicine. NKPSIMS got an increase of three seats, two in PSM/CM and one in physiology. The Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (MGIMS), Sewagram, also got an increase of two seats in ophthalmology.
The silver lining is, the loss of seats is not permanent. If they comply with the norms before the next MCI inspection and send a compliance report by March 31 they have good chance of getting the requested increase in seats. MCI Chairman Dr SB Siwach told TOI the council had sent its report to the central government and it was for the government to take a final decision. "Certain components are mandatory in infrastructure irrespective of the college having a PG course or not. IGGMC and GMC Yavatmal have lost seats due to this reason," he said.