The Union Health Ministry has decided to relax the land requirement norms for medical colleges from the current 25 acres to 20 acres throughout the country. The move is to facilitate setting up of more medical colleges in the country and thereby remove regional imbalances in respect of these institutions.

However, in respect of hill states and north eastern states, empowered action group (EAG) states under National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) and Union Territories (UTs) of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, two parcels of land separated by a distance of not more than 10 kms will also be allowed, senior health ministry officials said.

Officials said that there will be relaxations in the metropolitan and A grade cities too. Due to the non-availability of land in the metropolitan and A grade cities, medical colleges could have multi-storied buildings with the required floor area as per Medical Council of India (MCI) norms. In such cases, the requirement of land would be 10 acres instead of 20 acres.

Public Private Partnership for upgrading District Hospitals to Medical Colleges will be allowed in north eastern states, hill states and in those states where the number of medical colleges are less than the ratio prescribed by the Mudaliar Committee of the Planning Commission. (One Medical College for 50 lakh population) and in UTs of Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshdweep, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu.

The requirement of the number of beds and bed occupancy for setting up new medical colleges in the north eastern states and the hill states has also been relaxed.

The ministry has also rationalized the requirement of staff and infrastructure for setting up new medical colleges with the capacity of 50/100/150 seats. For postgraduate studies in various pre and para clinical departments of Anatomy, Physiology, Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Microbiology, Forensic Medicine and community medicine, the requirement of additional staff has been removed. Hitherto only universities, state governments/UTs, autonomous bodies promoted by central and state governments, registered societies, religious and charitable trusts were permitted to open medical colleges. Now companies registered under the Companies Act will also be allowed to establish medical colleges.

The above measures will remove regional imbalances in the country in respect of medical colleges and would address the shortage of human resources in health. These much needed reforms would enable the disadvantaged, un-served and difficult areas, particularly in the North Eastern States, Hill States and Union Territories to start closing in on the gap which has widened in recent times.