Retirement age of faculty doctors to be raised: Azad

Dharamsala, Nov 24 (ANI): Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Gulam Nabi Azad on Wednesday announced that the Central Government is considering the possibility of raising the retirement age of faculty doctors of medical colleges from 65 to 70 years.

"In the last three years, the Centre has raised the number of MD seats in medical colleges up to 4700 per year as against 300 in previous years," said Azad, while highlighting the various steps taken by the government to augment the standards of medical education in the country.

"There is need for at least 600 medical colleges to cater to a population like that, whereas the country has just 314 at the moment (including 160 in the private sector) which are producing less than 10 doctors for per 10,000 people," he added, while addressing a public gathering after laying the foundation stone of a 150 crore super speciality hospital at Tanda near Dharamsala.

Gulam Nabi Azad further said one medical school at every district headquarters shall be opened from the next session, which shall prepare doctors in three years, adding that these doctors shall be appointed in rural areas after three months of internship.

"However, these doctors will not be entitled to perform any surgery," he said.

Further talking about the super speciality hospitals in medical colleges, Azad said that 13 of them were sanctioned last year for the entire country and six this year including the Tanda Medical College.

"This will include ecology, cardiology, cardiac surgery, nephrology, neuron surgery and other facilities besides 200-bed special wards. The project shall be completed in 18 months," he added. (ANI)