Bhubaneswar: The National Medical Commission (NMC) has approved 318 additional postgraduate (PG) medical seats across 14 departments in various government medical colleges and PG institutions in Odisha, raising the total number of PG seats in the state from 620 to 938.
Earlier, PG medical education was offered at SCB Medical College and Hospital, Cuttack; MKCG Medical College, Brahmapur; VIMSAR, Burla; Bhima Bhoi Medical College and Hospital, Balangir; Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital, Balasore; Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College, Baripada; Acharya Harihar Postgraduate Institute of Cancer; and Capital Hospital, Bhubaneswar.
For the first time, PG courses will begin in several new government medical colleges. Dharanidhar Medical College and Hospital, Kendujhar, has been allotted 44 seats in 10 departments; Government Medical College and Hospital, Sundargarh, 22 seats in eight departments; Shaheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital, Koraput, 28 seats in nine departments; Pabitra Mohan Pradhan Medical College and Hospital, Talcher, 32 seats in 10 departments; and Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati Government Medical College and Hospital, Phulbani, 27 seats in eight departments.
Existing institutions have also received additional seats. Pandit Raghunath Murmu Medical College and Hospital, Baripada, will now have 53 seats (up from 20); Bhima Bhoi Medical College and Hospital, Balangir, 54 seats (up from 10); and Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital, Balasore, 54 seats (up from 8). Further additions include 11 seats at PGIMER and Capital Hospital, Bhubaneswar; 17 at SCB Medical College and Hospital; 3 at Acharya Harihar Postgraduate Institute of Cancer; and 11 at VIMSAR, Burla.
The new seats cover 14 departments: Anatomy, Anaesthesiology, Biochemistry, Community Medicine, ENT, General Medicine, General Surgery, Microbiology, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Orthopaedics, Paediatrics, Pathology, Psychiatry and Respiratory Medicine.
Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Mukesh Mahaling said the expansion marks a new chapter in Odisha’s health and medical education sector under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the leadership of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi.
He thanked Union Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda and the NMC, describing the increase from 620 to 938 seats as a historic step towards creating more skilled doctors and promoting regional equity by introducing PG education in areas such as Keonjhar, Sundargarh, Koraput, Talcher and Phulbani.
Officials said the expansion will strengthen medical education infrastructure, open new opportunities for higher studies and research, increase the availability of specialist doctors and improve quality healthcare services across the state.
