Supreme Court directs Centre to fill vacant medical seats, hold stakeholders’ meet

The Supreme Court directed the Centre to convene a meeting with stakeholders, including states, to discuss a committee’s recommendations on filling vacant medical seats. A bench comprising Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Viswanathan emphasised that medical seats cannot remain vacant. The Centre’s counsel informed the court that a committee had submitted its recommendations, and a meeting would be held to formulate a concrete proposal.

The Centre had then set up a committee, consisting of all the stakeholders including representatives of states and private medical colleges under the chairmanship of director general of health services, to resolve the issue after the top court in April, 2023 highlighted the issue of super-specialty seats in medical courses remaining vacant.

Noting that it would issue necessary directions in three months, it posted the matter for further hearing in April.

The top court had earlier said the petition depicted a “very sorry picture” as 1,003 precious super-specialty seats were going to waste as no admissions could take place for these seats.

“On the one hand, we find that there is always a shortage of super-specialty doctors, and on the other hand, these precious seats remain unfilled,” it lamented.