Studying medicine is a dream of every second student and doctors as noble profession. There has been a growing demand for doctors and due to paucity of recognised government colleges and institutes, the country has a dismal state as for every 10,000 Indians, there is one doctor.
The proposal submitted to the Medical Council of India aims to attract private players to invest in medical education under the new norms of shift to profit-making investment and pay tax to the government on the profits they make. The scheme weaved under the PPP model is proposed to encourage investment in the sector to meet the shortage of medical professionals in the country.
Earlier only governments, universities, trusts or charitable societies can set up medical colleges and private players had only a not-for-profit state. With the changed norms in place, private players are likely to face lesser entry barriers while making big investments in the medical education sector. The new guidelines seek to relax other rigid regulations such as land area restrictions and the teacher-to-student ratio.
The move came after the Planning Commission had recommended opening of the medical education sector for private sector participation to increase the supply of human resources at all levels while the country is facing an acute shortage of professionals in the healthcare sector.
