After heftily increasing the MBBS (bachelor of medicine and bachelor of surgery) and BDS (bachelor of dental science) fee, now the state government is in the process of increasing fee in postgraduate medical courses.
In the name of rationalisation of fee, the state’s department of medical education and research had constituted a committee for rationalising the PG admission fee under the chairmanship of Dr KK Talwar, health and medical education adviser to the Punjab government.
The committee had sought comments from medical institutes and the public regarding the fee structure in the state. Now, the private medical colleges in the state have demanded a hefty increase in fee.
Those who have demanded the hefty fee hike for postgraduate seats include Gian Sagar Medical College, Banur, which has asked to increase the PG fee to Rs 10 lakh annually for the clinical courses and Rs 6 lakh for non-clinical courses. Similarly, Dayanand Medical College, Ludhiana, has also demanded a hefty increase in the fee.
In the government colleges, the PG-course fee is Rs 40,000, Rs 45,000, and Rs 50,000 for the first, second and final years, respectively. In the clinical branches of the private MS and MD courses, it is Rs 5 lakh a year. For basic branches, such as biochemistry, anatomy and physiology, it is Rs 2 lakh, and for postgraduate diploma it is Rs 3 lakh.
{{/usCountry}}In the government colleges, the PG-course fee is Rs 40,000, Rs 45,000, and Rs 50,000 for the first, second and final years, respectively. In the clinical branches of the private MS and MD courses, it is Rs 5 lakh a year. For basic branches, such as biochemistry, anatomy and physiology, it is Rs 2 lakh, and for postgraduate diploma it is Rs 3 lakh.
{{/usCountry}}For the MDS course, the annual charges are Rs 4.5 lakh and for doctorate in medicine (super-specialisation) Rs 6 lakh.
In March, the state government had increased the MBBS fee from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 2.2 lakh for the first year, with a provision for 10% hike in each of the next four years. The annual fee will be Rs 3.22 lakh by the final year.
Due to the current fee structure of MBBS in private medical colleges, a large number of qualified candidates couldn’t afford admission in the state colleges. Despite having more than 300 eligible candidates, 41 MBBS seats remained vacant in the state.
Of the 500-odd postgraduate seats in government and private medical colleges of the state, nearly 250 are in the government quota.