NEW DELHI: The number of medical colleges in India has risen from 387 in 2014 to 844 now, while MBBS undergraduate seats have risen from 51,348 to 1,39,489, Minister of State for Health Anupriya Patel said on Friday.
In a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha, the minister also said postgraduate medical seats increased from 31,185 to 86,360 in the same time period.
The minister said the establishment of new medical colleges in remote and underserved areas, coupled with expansion of MBBS seats, is expected to improve the availability of doctors and enhance healthcare delivery across the country.
Patel also highlighted the Family Adoption Programme, which has been integrated into the MBBS curriculum.
Under the programme, medical colleges adopt villages, while MBBS students adopt families within those villages to provide regular follow-up on vaccination, growth monitoring, menstrual hygiene, iron and folic acid supplementation, nutrition, healthy lifestyle practices, vector control and medication adherence.
She noted that the region’s residency program, introduced by the National Medical Commission, provides for postgraduate medical students to be placed for three months in region hospitals as part of their training.
The program aims to strengthen health care services in rural and deprived areas.
Responding to a question about the impact of Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, Patel said the evaluation conducted by NITI Aayog found encouraging results, including improved infrastructure and increased community uptake due to expanded access to comprehensive primary healthcare services.
The study indicated the availability of better care for non-communicable diseases, outpatient services, free medicines and diagnostic facilities.
According to the minister, the deployment of community health officers has enhanced frontline healthcare delivery, while digital platforms like e-Sanjeevani have expanded access to specialist consultations.
Patel said that under the National Health Mission, the performance of health programs is regularly monitored through review meetings, field visits, mid-term evaluations, service delivery standards and annual joint review missions.
The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has launched several initiatives to improve service delivery, including integrated training modules in collaboration with regional training institutes, the Swasth Bharat portal to enhance digital interoperability, and increased use of the drug and vaccine distribution management system to enhance drug inventory and supply chain management.
The ministry also issued revised guidelines for village health, sanitation and nutrition committees and Jan Arogya Samits to enhance community engagement, developed standardized information, educational and communication materials to sensitize beneficiaries, and introduced incentive mechanisms in Ayushman Arogya Mandirs to improve retention of healthcare workers, she added.
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