Govt revives plan for medical college in south Mumbai

The state medical education department plans to revive a proposal to set up a new state-run medical college in south Mumbai, with a capacity for 100 students. The proposal has faced delays due to lack of political will. Currently, Mumbai has only one state-run medical college.

Mumbai: The state medical education department plans to revive an 11-year-old proposal to set up a new state-run medical college in south Mumbai. A meeting is scheduled at Vidhan Bhavan on Monday. At present, Grant Medical College and Sir JJ Group of Hospitals is the only state-run medical college in Mumbai.

HT Image

“We plan to formalise the implementation of a medical college in south Mumbai with a capacity to admit 100 medical students. We have GT Hospital, Cama and Albless Hospital to support the medical college,” said a senior official from the medical education department.

Several senior officials are expected to attend the meeting at Vidha Bhavan. They include the principal secretary, medical education department; director of the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER); medical education commissioner; dean of Sir JJ Group of Hospitals; and public works department engineers.

Dr Pravin Shingare, former director of DMER, under whose tenure the medical college was proposed, said, “The state-run GT Hospital and Cama Albless Hospital fulfill the 500-bed hospital criteria to start a medical college. We only need to construct a medical college building.”

Earlier this month, the government approved a new medical college in Hingoli with 100 seats, which would be attached to a 430-bed hospital. The medical education department said that the existing district hospital would be converted into a 430-bed hospital to facilitate the new medical college.

In case of the proposed medical college in south Mumbai, however, these was no need to add beds or construct any new hospital, clarified Shingare.

“Sir JJ Hospital and Grant Medical College requires 1000 beds against its 250 medical seats as per National Medical Commission norms. But JJ Hospital alone has 1,300 beds. So, the beds in three attached hospitals – St George Hospital, GT Hospital and Cama Albless Hospital – can be utilised for a new medical college,” he said.

A senior official from the medical education department said that extra floor space index was available at St George Hospital and Cama Hospital premises, which the department plans to utilise for building the medical college and administrative building.

The senior official attributed the more than 10-year delay in implementing the proposal to lack of political will. “Every politician wants a medical college in their constituency. No politician wanted to push for the south Mumbai medical college,” said the official.

The state has 66 medical colleges, out of which 25 are state-run medical colleges with a student capacity of 3,950. Mumbai has five medical colleges, four of which are run by Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, with a student capacity of 900.