India approves expansion of medical education capacity

The decision will add about 5,000 postgraduate seats.

The Union Cabinet has approved Phase III of the Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) to expand medical education in India.

The decision will add 5,000 postgraduate seats through strengthening existing state and central government medical colleges, standalone postgraduate institutes, and government hospitals.

In addition, the Cabinet approved the extension of the CSS for upgrading existing government medical colleges to create an additional 5,023 MBBS seats.

The cost ceiling for each seat has been set at $169,258.65 (₹1.5 crore).

The total financial implication of the two schemes amounts to $1.65b (₹15,034.50 crore) for 2025–26 to 2028–29, comprising a central share of $1.13b (₹10,303.20 crore) and a state share of $520m (₹4,731.30 crore).

₹1 = $0.011