Hyderabad: India’s Supreme Court on Thursday granted conditional permission for the restoration of 13 medical colleges in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
On a petition filed by the management of the 13 medical colleges, the Supreme Court passed the orders and directed them to give a written undertaking to provide all the necessary infrastructure and other facilities in their institutions.
The Medical Council of India (MCI) had withdrawn the permission to these colleges affecting the future of more than 1,000 students on the ground that the colleges did not have necessary infrastructure.
The court also ordered deposits of Rs100 million (Dh6 million) per college as a guarantee, which will be forfeited if colleges fail to implement their promise.
The MCI had denied the medical colleges permission to carry out fresh admissions last month when surprise inspections revealed the absence of faculty and other facilities.
The affected institutions include five new medical colleges and other older colleges in both states.
The private colleges denied renewal included Malla Reddy Institute of Medical Sciences, with 150 seats, owned by the Telugu Desam Party lawmaker Malla Reddy, and Dr VRK Women’s Medical College and Fatima Institute of Medical Sciences in Kadapa — with 100 seats each.
The permission from the court came when the process of admission to the remaining medical and dental colleges in both states was almost completed in both the convener and managements quotas. About 6,100 MBBS seats in 45 colleges across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana had been filled.
However, hundreds of other students who qualified through common entrance tests were left disappointed with the sudden closure of 13 colleges.
“The intervention of Supreme Court has come as a big relief. It has given us a new hope”, said Basharat Ali, father of an aspirant.
