MBBS Seats in India: To address the shortage of doctors in India, medical education has been rapidly expanded in the last few years. This information was provided by the Ministry of Health in the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament). The Ministry informed the Rajya Sabha that a total of 48,563 MBBS seats and 29,080 postgraduate (MD/MS) seats have been increased between 2020-21 and 2025-26. This increase was made on the advice of the National Medical Commission (NMC) to address the shortage of doctors, especially in rural and underserved areas.

Union Minister of State for Health, Anupriya Patel, presented a written reply in the Rajya Sabha stating that the increase in medical education seats aims to improve the doctor-patient ratio in the country and provide quality medical education to Indian students within the country, so that they do not have to go abroad for medical studies.

How MBBS Seats Increased Year by Year
MBBS seats have increased every year. Initially, a total of 2,963 MBBS seats were added in 2020-21. Then there was a significant jump in 2021-22, and the number reached 8,790. In 2022-23, 7,398 new MBBS seats were added. Similarly, 9,652 seats were added in 2023-24 and 8,641 seats in 2024-25. The biggest increase occurred in 2025-26, with 11,119 seats added.  In total, 48,563 MBBS seats were added over six years. This has increased the opportunities for admission to medical colleges.

Continuous Increase in PG Seats
Postgraduate seats have also seen a significant increase. In 2020-21, 4,983 postgraduate seats were added. In 2021-22, 4,705 seats were added. A total of 2,874 seats were increased in 2022-23. Then, 4,713 more seats were added in 2023-24 and 4,186 new seats in 2024-25. The biggest increase occurred in 2025-26, during which a total of 7,619 seats were added. In total, 29,080 PG seats were increased in 6 years. This will increase the number of specialized doctors.

10,023 new seats to be added

The central government plans to further increase the number of medical education seats. Under centrally sponsored schemes, another 10,023 new medical seats will be added to government medical colleges from 2025-26 to 2028-29. This increase will continue rapidly so that the shortage of doctors in the country can be eliminated.

What are the benefits of these changes?
With the increase in all these seats, the doctor-patient ratio is improving in the states. Indian students are getting good medical education within the country, so the compulsion to go abroad for studies has decreased. Earlier, thousands of students used to go abroad. Now most of them are studying in the country itself.

How is quality being maintained?

Questions arise about quality when seats are increased, but the government has also made arrangements for this. The NMC has made several strict rules. Minimum Standard Requirements (MSR), Graduate Medical Education Regulations (GMER) 2023, Maintenance of Standards of Medical Education Regulations (MSMER) 2023, and Competency-Based Medical Education (CBME) Curriculum Guidelines 2024 are in effect. These measures are being implemented to ensure that the quality of education and clinical standards do not decline even with the increase in the number of seats.

Disclaimer: This content has been sourced and edited from News 18 hindi. While we have made modifications for clarity and presentation, the original content belongs to its respective authors and website. We do not claim ownership of the content.