Compulsory year-long rural internship mooted for MBBS aspirants

The centre has accepted the Karnataka government's proposal  to conduct final written and viva examination for MBBS after four and a half years and then require students to undergo a mandatory one-year internship in rural areas.

According to Karnataka's medical education minister S A Ramdas, the centre would amend the Medical Council of India curriculum in this regard so that the change would be applicable across the country.

The minister, who attended a two-day conference of health and medical education ministers in Hyderabad on Thursday, said 100 post graduate seats had been allotted for the first time in the six government medical colleges in Mandya, Belgaum, Hassan, Shimoga, Raichur and Bidar, with 250 more in four other medical colleges. With the increase a total of 694 postgraduate seats would be available in the state, he said.

He said that the number of MBBS seats in the 10 government medical colleges would be hiked from 1,100 to 1,600 in the next academic year and that the centre had also accepted the Karnataka government's proposal to increase the number of MBBS seats in government-run medical colleges by 500 and postgraduate seats by 350.

The minister said the Karnataka government had submitted proposals to establish paramedical institutions to the centre and to introduce paramedical courses in medical colleges.