Pune will get 50 additional MBBS seats from the 2027-28 academic year, with the Union health ministry approving a proposal to start a medical college at the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Medical College and Hospital in Bibwewadi, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced on Wednesday.
“The Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has approved a new medical college with 50 MBBS seats for ESIC Medical College and Hospital, Pune. “We pursued the proposal with the Union ministry to start a medical college with 50 MBBS seats at the ESIC hospital in Bibwewadi.
The approval has come after our appeal which was made following rejection of our proposal twice by Centre,” said Fadnavis. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis took special interest in the matter, which helped secure the approval,” Misal said.
The development is expected to expand medical education opportunities in Pune, while a proposed 500-bed hospital at the site is expected to strengthen the city’s healthcare infrastructure. Misal added that construction of the 500-bed hospital at the site was expected to be completed by the end of December this year. Pune serves as a healthcare hub for patients from several districts across western and central Maharashtra, including Satara, Sangli, Solapur, Kolhapur and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
The approval follows two rounds of reconsideration of the proposal, according to minister of state for medical education Madhuri Misal, who credited Fadnavis’s intervention with helping secure the clearance.
