Kashmir Impulse Desk

Jammu, July 13

India’s medical education regulator has approved an increase of 50 undergraduate medical seats at Government Medical College (GMC) Jammu, raising the institution’s annual MBBS intake to 250 students from the 2026–27 academic session, officials said on Monday.

The approval was granted by the Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB) of the National Medical Commission (NMC), which issued a Letter of Permission after reviewing the college’s application under the National Medical Commission Act, 2019, and the Undergraduate Medical Education Standards Regulations, 2023.

The expansion raises GMC Jammu’s annual intake from 200 to 250 seats and follows a similar approval granted last week to Government Medical College Srinagar, taking the combined increase across the two premier medical institutions in Jammu and Kashmir to 100 MBBS seats.

Principal Ashutosh Gupta said the approval would take effect from the 2026–27 academic year.

The Jammu and Kashmir Health and Medical Education Department described the decision as a significant boost for medical education in the region, saying it reflected the administration’s efforts to expand training capacity, strengthen healthcare infrastructure and provide more opportunities for students seeking medical degrees within the Union Territory.

Under the approval, the college will continue to contribute 15 percent of its undergraduate seats and half of its postgraduate broad-speciality seats to the All India Quota for centralised admissions conducted by the Medical Counselling Committee, in line with national policy.

The NMC said the permission was subject to the institution maintaining prescribed standards relating to faculty strength, hospital facilities, infrastructure, clinical material and other statutory requirements.

The regulator warned that the approval could be withdrawn if the institution failed to comply with regulatory norms or if it was found to have obtained permission through misrepresentation or submission of false information.

The commission also said it retained the authority to conduct surprise inspections and impose regulatory action, including reducing intake, suspending admissions or withdrawing recognition if standards were not maintained.

Chief Minister Omar Abdullah welcomed the approval, congratulating Health and Medical Education Minister Sakina Itoo and the administrations of both GMC Jammu and GMC Srinagar.

In a statement issued by the Chief Minister’s Office, Abdullah said the increase in MBBS seats represented an important step towards strengthening medical education and expanding opportunities for aspiring doctors across Jammu and Kashmir.

The expansion is part of a broader push by the Union Territory administration to increase medical education capacity amid rising demand for undergraduate medical seats in India.