Medical colleges instructed not to force PG students to live in hostels

The National Medical Commission (NMC) has given strict instructions to all medical colleges not to force postgraduate students to live in a hostel. The NMC in its notice said, “It is mandatory to provide hostels to students, but colleges cannot compel students to stay in hostels”.

The instructions given to the medical colleges by the NMC state: “Provision of suitable residential accommodation to postgraduate students as per rule 5.6 of the Post Graduate Medical Education Regulations (PGMER) 2023 is given and it shall be compulsory for the college. However, postgraduate students cannot be forced to live in hostels.”

The commission has also clarified that there was no such provision in the earlier PGMER. The commission has received complaints from postgraduate students that some medical colleges and institutes are forcing students to stay in the institutions’ hostels. The NMC has warned that if colleges do not comply with these norms, they will face various penalties including monetary penalties. The NMC in its notification said, “All medical colleges and institutes should take cognisance of the above rules. In case of non-implementation of these rules, the NMC may take action as per regulations 9.1 and 9.2 of PGMER 2023, which may include monetary penalty, reduction of seats, stoppage of admission etc.”

“I am studying in a private medical college in Maharashtra and the college administration had forced us to stay in the college hostel, but as we friends got cheaper rooms available outside the college campus, we preferred to stay there. Now through these instructions by the NMC, we have got huge relief,” said Shantanu Padhye, a medical student.