KOCHI: The Kerala High Court has granted the state government permission to admit students in MBBS courses in the Palakkad Government Medical College for the 2018-19 academic year.The court also allowed the government to conduct the second round of counselling in the All-India Merit Quota as well as to hold the entire state counselling. The court passed the order on a petition filed by the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribe and Backward Welfare Department, which runs the college.
The college was started by the department during 2014-2015 with an annual permitted student intake of 100 seats. The permission was renewed by the MCI during the subsequent years. The Committee constituted by the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare Department had visited the college in December 2017 and found certain deficiencies, including shortage of teaching staff and resident doctors. Following this, the MCI decided not to renew permission for the colleges for the academic year 2018-19.
The Principal Secretary pointed out that of the 30 defects noted, the majority of them were rectified and the remaining defects were being resolved.