NMC gives green signal for Shillong Medical College

The Shillong Medical College (SMC), the first state-owned medical college in Meghalaya, will begin its academic session in September after receiving approval from the National Medical Commission (NMC). Health and Family Welfare Minister, Dr. Mazel Ampareen Lyngdoh said the state health department has received the letter of permission from NMC. Initially the medical college would have an intake of 50 students, she said.
The medical college would be headed by Dr. Nicola Gracyl Lyngdoh Iangrai, an ENT surgeon from RIIMS, as the Director.
Lyngdoh said the SMC would not have a new hospital infrastructure and would use the existing hospitals – Shillong Civil Hospital and Ganesh Das Hospital.
However, the medical college still does not have the requisite number of faculty member. Lyngdoh informed that the college has so far 8 professors. The requirement is 16. There are similar shortages in other categories of the teaching staff.
Lyngdoh said the shortage is due to the remoteness of Meghalaya and also other facilities like competitive salaries which has deterred teaching faculties from coming to the state. Meanwhile, the academic session would begin from the last week of September for NEET qualified students. Meghalaya would get its share of quota in the SMC. The state now has 94 MBBS seats at various medical institutions outside the state, such as NEIGRIHMS and RIIMS, Imphal. The seats at SMC would be an addition.