NEW DELHI: States like Jharkhand and Bihar with acute shortage of doctors have seen few new medical colleges being opened in the last five years, while those with a glut of MBBS seats and doctors continue to allow new private colleges. This is despite doctors’ associations in these states warning against over-production of doctors.
In Jharkhand, a state with the worst doctor-population ratio of just one doctor for over 8,000 people, no medical college has been started since 1969. Even in the last five years, which saw over 121 colleges being opened nationally, Jharkhand got none.
Similarly, in Bihar with a doctor-population ratio of one for over 3,200 people, none were opened in the last five years and just five in the previous 13 years, 2000-13. Eight government colleges in Bihar and five in Jharkhand have been proposed, but that’s for the future.
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