Odisha has approved 318 new postgraduate medical seats across 12 government medical colleges and hospitals, taking the total number of PG seats in the state-run institutions to 938 and expanding specialist training capacity beyond the major centres of Cuttack, Burla and Bhubaneswar.
Health minister Mukesh Mahaling said five newer medical colleges in Koraput, Sundargarh, Talcher, Phulbani and Keonjhar had received approval to introduce postgraduate courses. Together, these institutions account for 153 of the newly approved seats, or nearly half of the total increase.
Saheed Laxman Nayak Medical College and Hospital in Koraput has been allotted 28 seats, while the government medical college and hospital in Sundargarh has received 22. Pabitra Mohan Pradhan Medical College and Hospital in Talcher has been approved for 32 seats, and Swami Laxmananada Saraswati Government Medical College and Hospital in Phulbani has received 27 seats. Dharanidhar Medical College and Hospital in Keonjhar has secured the highest allocation among the five, with 44 seats.
The state government said the new courses are intended to strengthen specialist healthcare availability in districts including Koraput, Kandhamal, Sundargarh, Keonjhar and Angul. These districts include interior and tribal-dominated regions where patients may otherwise depend on larger tertiary-care institutions in the state’s principal medical centres.
Mahaling said the introduction of postgraduate programmes would help train specialist doctors closer to underserved regions and could encourage trained professionals to remain in remote districts. He described the expansion as an improvement to both medical education infrastructure and district-level healthcare capacity.
The latest approvals also add seats at two established institutions. SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack has received 17 additional PG seats, taking its total to 249, while Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research in Burla has received 11 more, raising its total to 155.
Three government medical colleges did not receive new PG seats in this round. MKCG Medical College and Hospital in Berhampur recorded no increase, while the newer institutions in Puri, Bhawanipatna and Jajpur also did not receive approvals. MKCG principal H K Dalai said the institution would examine the relevant documents and take corrective measures before applying again.
Director of Medical Education and Training, Odisha, D P Satapathy said the medical colleges in Puri, Bhawanipatna and Jajpur would apply again next year after addressing shortcomings. He said the reasons for the unsuccessful applications would be assessed after the files were reviewed. Odisha has 16 government medical colleges and hospitals, and the health minister said other institutions are expected to receive postgraduate courses and seats in the coming days.
