NMC Removes Seat Cap And Population Ratio Norms, Allows Medical Colleges To Expand MBBS Capacity | Education and Career News
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The NMC has scrapped the provision that capped MBBS seats at 150 per college for institutions seeking expansion from the 2024–25 academic year onwards.
The commission has also revised the rules on the permissible distance between a medical college and its teaching hospital. (Representative image/File)
The National Medical Commission (NMC) has announced a major policy shift by lifting key restrictions on the expansion of MBBS seats in medical colleges across India. In a gazette notification dated April 27, 2026, the commission amended its 2023 regulations on establishing new medical colleges and expanding existing programmes. This change is expected to substantially increase undergraduate medical seats and broaden access to medical education amid the growing demand for doctors.
The NMC has removed the provision that capped MBBS seats at 150 per college for institutions seeking expansion. Colleges can now apply to increase their intake without this ceiling, giving both government and private institutions greater flexibility to scale up capacity and accommodate the growing number of medical aspirants across the country.
Another significant change is scrapping the requirement for states to maintain a ratio of 100 MBBS seats per 10 lakh population. This population-based benchmark had previously guided the approval of new seats and medical colleges. By removing this condition, the NMC aims to speed up approvals and enable states and institutions to plan expansion based on actual healthcare and educational needs instead of a fixed numerical ratio.
“The following objective in the UG-MSR 2023 ‘Colleges seeking increased number of seats cannot exceed a total of 150 MBBS students from the Year 2024-25’ shall be deleted,” reads the official notice.
“The provision under the Objective in the UG-MSR 2023 “Provided that medical college shall follow the ratio of 100 MBBS seats per 10 lakh population in that state/U.T’’ shall be deleted,” it added.
The commission has revised the rules on the permissible distance between a medical college and its teaching hospital. The earlier norm, which was based on a maximum travel time of 30 minutes, has been replaced with a fixed limit of 10 km in physical distance. For northeastern and Himalayan states, this limit has been relaxed to 15 km in recognition of their geographical challenges. This change is expected to make infrastructure planning easier for institutions.
April 30, 2026, 12:26 IST
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