PNS|Hyderabad
The Telangana Government has amended the Telangana State Medical Colleges Admission Rules, bringing good news for students hoping to study medicine in Telangana. These amendments have been made in accordance with the AP Reorganization Act and Article 371D.
As per the revised rules, all seats in the competitive authority quota in medical colleges established after June 2, 2014, will be reserved exclusively for Telangana students.
Earlier, only 85 per cent of the seats were reserved for local students, while the remaining 15 per cent were unreserved, allowing students from both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to compete for them. Now, Telangana students have a greater chance of securing MBBS seats. Before the formation of Telangana, there were 20 medical colleges, including both government and private institutions. This has now increased to 56, significantly expanding the availability of medical education opportunities. Earlier, Telangana had 2,850 MBBS seats, but this has now increased to 8,340 seats.
Of the 2,850 seats available in 20 medical colleges before the formation of Telangana, 1,895 seats were allocated under the Competent Authority quota. In this quota, 15 per cent of the seats were unreserved, that is, 280 seats. Both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh students were allowed to compete for them and this often resulted in Telangana students losing seats.
The Telangana government amended the rules by restricting the unreserved quota to only 20 old medical colleges and exempted the 36 new medical colleges from this provision. As a result, 520 medical seats were exclusively allotted to Telangana students.
It is important to note that Telangana students were already benefiting from the existing local reservation policy, which reserved 85 per cent of the MBBS B category seats for them, which came to 1,300 seats.
After these two important decisions taken by the Telangana government, 1,820 MBBS seats will be available annually. This increase is equivalent to establishing approximately 20 new medical colleges.
It is worth mentioning that the All India quota of 15 per cent seats in new medical colleges will not be affected by this change. This allows students from all over the country, including Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, to secure admissions based on merit.
Health Minister Harish Rao said that he was proud to say that 43% of the new MBBS seats in government medical colleges are in Telangana. He said that 900 of the 2,118 new MBBS seats in government medical colleges in India for the 2023-24 academic year belong to Telangana.
“The Telangana Government has provided an outstanding opportunity for local students to fulfil their dream of becoming doctors without having to leave the state. The decisions implemented by Chief Minister KCR have brought Telangana students closer to realizing their dreams. With the additional allocation of 1,820 medical seats exclusively for Telangana students, the government has demonstrated its commitment to medical education. After the formation of Telangana, the healthcare sector has witnessed remarkable growth, exemplified by the establishment of district-level medical colleges ensuring greater opportunities for Telangana students. I request TS students to seize this golden opportunity,” Health Harish said.
He said the government is determined to provide quality healthcare to the public and medical education opportunities to Telangana students.
