Srinagar, Apr 27: With just a week to go for the UG NEET exam date, thousands of MBBS aspirants in J&K have hinged their hopes on the increase of MBBS seats in J&K Government Medical Colleges.
The much sought after addition they feel, may bolster their chances of selection here. J&K Minister of Health and Medical Education, Sakina Itoo said efforts had been put in place to satisfy the various criteria mandated by National Medical Commission.
Itoo, while speaking to GK said that concerted efforts were in place to improve the faculty availability, libraries, laboratories and class rooms as per the requirements of NMC. She said the Health and Medical Education Department as well as the administrations of these medical colleges had been directed to take proactive steps and ensure that Letter of Permission is granted by NMC.
“We are positive we will be able to get a nod for 50 additional seats in each of the nine government medical colleges of J&K,” she said. The NEET UG Exam is scheduled for May 4 this year, the final selections scheduled a couple of months ahead following rounds of counseling and other procedures.
There are a total of 1339, including those in AIIMS Jammu and ASCOMS Jammu, a private medical college. Of these, 50 percent are pooled into All India Quota, while 4 percent is reserved for aspirants from UT of Ladakh. The remaining seats are divided between various categories. Many aspirants have voiced their anguish that the seats available in the unreserved pool are too little and leave a huge number of meritorious candidates out.
The gross shortage of faculty that remains unaddressed in various medical colleges of J&K may dash the hopes of MBBS aspirants to secure a seat in one of the Government Medical Colleges here. According to the administration of some medical colleges, there is an unfulfilled pre-requisite for seeking seat increase – the adequate number of faculty members in various departments. Over the past few years scores of positions in each of the older medical colleges of Jammu and Srinagar have fallen vacant due to superannuation.
However, these positions have not been filled. Many positions have been referred to J&K Public Service Commission, they said, adding that many more are yet in the process of getting referred.
In March this year, J&K Government acknowledged that more than 50 faculty positions in GMC Rajouri were vacant. “Out of 119 faculty positions, 55 are filled while the remaining have been referred to J&K Public Services Commission”, the Government said in an answer to a question. The commission is yet to advertise the posts.
For many other new medical colleges, like Doda, Handwara and Udhampur, similar issues persisted. For SKIMS Medical Colleges Hospital, faculty and overall infrastructure deficits were major issues that needed immediate redress, the faculty of these medical colleges said.
