Stating that the government has completed the process of announcing the seat matrix within the scheduled date, Minister of State for Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil has said that the seat matrix for the medical course would be displayed within two days.
Speaking to presspersons after inaugurating the newly constructed 40-bed Intensive Care Unit and other facilities at the BLDE Medical Hospital here on Friday, he made it clear that there was no delay from the government’s side on completing the process.
To a question, he said that the Medical Council of India has given approval to three new government medical colleges — Kalaburagi, Gadag and Koppal, with each college having the intake capacity of 150 students.
“Three new colleges have also been proposed, one each at Kodagu, Karwar and Chamarajanagar. The MCI is yet to accord its permission for opening these colleges,” he said.
On the demand for granting one government medical college to Vijayapura, Dr. Patil said that the proposal was before the government. “The priority of the government is to provide better facilities to the already started colleges,” he said.
On the demand of establishing a branch of AIIMS in Karnataka, the Minister said that the government has recommended some eight districts to the Union government for consideration.
About the long-pending demand for having Common Entrance Test in the country for professional courses, Dr. Patil said that the Supreme Court judgment was acting as hurdle as the Apex Court has given verdict in favour of the private medical colleges.
“However, the Union government could bring an amendment to the law for having Common Entrance Test across the country. I have written a letter to the Union government to bring in such an amendment,” he said.
Minister of State for Medical Education Sharan Prakash Patil has said that with the law that mandates medical students to serve in rural areas for one year, the government expected to get at least 5,500 doctors in rural areas every year. “This would mitigate the problem of shortage of doctors in rural areas to a great extent,” he said.
The Minister said that unlike other States that have a similar Act, the Karnataka Act mandates every medical students to serve in rural areas, whether he/she takes admission under government, private quota or under NRI quota,” he said.
