M F AHMAD
Daltonganj, Dec 11: The National Medical Commission has instructed all medical colleges in the nation to have courses that will be 13 months long instead of 11 months for the first-year MBBS students of the academic year 2022-23.
Notably, Shambhu Sharan Kumar, Director, Under Graduate Medical Education Board (UGMEB) of the National Medical Commission has sent a letter dated December 7, 2022 in this regard. The letter contains the academic calendar and MBBS curriculum sent to all the principals and deans of medical colleges pan India. It is to ensure the first-year MBBS courses will be essential of 13 months.
Dr Atul Prakash, faculty of the medical college in this regard said, “We have received this letter from the director UGMEB on behalf of the National Medical Commission regarding the 13-month long course of the first year MBBS courses in the medical colleges for the ongoing session 2022-23.”
The 13 months duration began on November 15, 2022, and will end on December 15, 2023, having approximately 42 weeks for hard and dedicated teaching, while the rest of the weeks are reserved for prelims, examinations, vacations and public holidays reads the letter of the director UGMEB.
Dr Prakash said, “During the pandemic, the National Medical Commission had shortened the first-year MBBS courses to just 11 months which was for the session 2021 -22 but now the first-year MBBS courses are back to 13 months.”
At present, there are 93 students in the first-year MBBS courses at the Medinirai medical college at Pokhraha in Daltonganj for the academic session 2022 -23.
Dr Atul Prakash said, “When we were students in the late nineties, medical colleges were18-month long in the first year MBBS courses which has now been slashed to 13 months only and hence we urge the students to make the best of the foundation of the MBBS courses in the 13 months.”
