Maharashtra approves two medical colleges to get private university status

The Maharashtra cabinet approved two medical colleges – NKP Salve Medical College, Nagpur, and Dr Vithalrao Vikhe Patil Foundation's Medical College, Ahilyanagar – to become private universities, named Lata Mangeshkar University and Balasaheb Vikhe Patil University, respectively.

Lata Mangeshkar University, managed by VSPM Academy of Higher Education, will also run programmes in dental, physiotherapy, and nursing courses and has a 1,138-bed hospital. While Balasaheb Vikhe Patil University, sponsored by Dr Vithalrao Vikhe Patil Foundation, has an 830-bed hospital.

The cabinet’s decision comes after the state's scrutiny committee inspected the two institutes as per the National Medical Commission (NMC) guidelines.

The development comes after private medical colleges in Maharashtra sought greater control , particularly over financial matters, with some also involved in a constant tussle with the state government over fee structures and delays in scholarship reimbursement.

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Medical colleges seek deemed, private university status

Notably, the KJ Somaiya Medical College (KJSMC), Mumbai, has also applied to become a deemed-to-be-university. Another institute, BKL Walawalkar Rural Medical College (BKLWRMC) in Ratnagiri, may also get the deemed tag. Careers360 has reported earlier that its managing body has also approached the University Grants Commission (UGC) to set up a deemed university.

However, the proposed university does not currently include medicine programmes, which will likely be added to the new institute in the next academic session.

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Maharashtra medical colleges eye for company tags

The management of Prakash Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) Sangli has also converted its status from a charitable trust to a Section 8 company, following the steps of the Vedantaa Institute of Medical Sciences (VIMS), Palghar, which was the only private college run by a private company.

The state currently has 85 medical education institutes offering MBBS, comprising 43 government and 42 private colleges. Of the private institutes, 29 are affiliated with the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS) Nashik , which is a state public university, while the others are associated with deemed universities. Until last month, though, there was no provision allowing state private universities to offer medical courses.