Nagaland to get its first medical college after 60 years of becoming a state

NEW DELHI: Nagaland has got the approval to set up its first medical college since it got statehood in 1963, Health and Family Welfare Minister P Paiwang Konyak said on Wednesday. The medical college will begin its journey with 100 MBBS students from the academic session 2023-24.

“We received the approval for a 100 MBBS seat medical college from the National Medical Commission, Medical Assessment & Rating Board (NMC, MARB) on Tuesday,” Konyak told a press conference here. The state government will send the acceptance letter within a week to enable the MARB to issue the Letter of Permission for the academic year 2023-24, he said.

It is “a great and historic day” for the people of the northeastern state, the minister said. Health and Family Welfare Commissioner and Secretary Y Kikheto Sema told the press conference that the session will start by June-July this year. Of the 100 seats, 85 would be for students of Nagaland while the remaining 15 will be reserved for aspirants from other states.

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The minister said that the civil works of the college have been completed and the academic session 2023 will commence by June or July. The state is getting the best of the faculty members. He further informed that 92 candidates appeared in the interviews conducted in February and March, of which 32 were shortlisted. Among the shortlisted candidates, 29 of them have expressed their willingness to serve the medical college.

In the third phase of the interview held on April 14 and 15, a total of 64 candidates participated. The results of the interviews will be published on April 20 or 21, as per the All India Radio News Kohima said.

(With inputs from PTI)