The Supreme Court, on Friday, emphasized the critical issue of vacant seats in medical super speciality courses across India, urging the Centre to convene a meeting with relevant stakeholders to find a solution. The directive came from a bench comprising Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan, who stressed the urgency of filling these positions to avoid wasting valuable educational resources.
The issue was first highlighted by the apex court in April 2023, noting the troubling number of super speciality seats that remained unfilled. In response, the Centre proposed the creation of a committee chaired by the Director General of Health Services and including representatives from states and private medical colleges to tackle this issue.
The Centre’s counsel informed the court on Friday that this committee had been formed and had already submitted its recommendations. The counsel suggested that it would be beneficial for the Centre to organize a discussion with all stakeholders to formulate a concrete proposal based on these recommendations.
Acknowledging the severity of the situation, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to conduct this crucial meeting within the next three months, with a follow-up in April. The court underscored the paradox in the healthcare sector, where there is a persistent shortage of super speciality doctors, yet many specialized medical seats go unfilled each year.
The bench pointed out that over 1,000 super speciality seats were at risk of remaining vacant, describing the scenario as a “very sorry picture” of the state of medical education in India. This situation not only affects the quality of healthcare but also represents a significant loss in educational and professional opportunities for aspiring doctors.
