Tamil Nadu medical counselling leaves 33 super-speciality seats vacant
Thirty-three super-speciality medical seats remained unfilled after Tamil Nadu’s stray counselling round for in-service candidates. Officials said 13 seats were allotted and two upgraded, while doctors attributed the continuing vacancies to surrendered seats, course preferences, eligibility rules and concerns over pay and promotion.
Thirty-three super-speciality medical seats remained vacant after a stray counselling round conducted in Tamil Nadu for in-service candidates, according to the State Selection Committee. Officials said 13 seats were newly allotted and two candidates received upgrades during the counselling held over the weekend. The committee had earlier listed 43 vacant seats, along with additional virtual vacancies on its website.
The round followed a reduction of the qualifying percentile for super-speciality courses to the 30th percentile. Nearly 40 unfilled seats had also returned to the State after the second round of All India Quota counselling. Among the seats still vacant were 10 in MCh Cardio Vascular and Thoracic Surgery and 10 in MCh Paediatric Surgery.
Tamil Nadu reserves half of its super-speciality seats for service candidates. Government doctors said the State had surrendered 151 unfilled seats intended for in-service candidates for the second All India Quota round, after which many sought-after seats were taken. Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association general secretary M.
Akilan said 118 service candidates had applied and were awaiting another counselling round. Doctors offered several explanations for the vacancies. They called for the State to fill its reserved seats through its own process, and for a consistent eligibility standard rather than lowering the qualifying percentile later in the cycle.
Representatives also cited remuneration and promotion concerns among government doctors. A Service Doctors and Post Graduates Association representative said recurring vacancies could threaten public healthcare in the long term. Another doctor said increasing postgraduate seats without increasing doctor posts would not solve the problem.
Suggestions included reserving some seats for Tamil Nadu domicile candidates after service counselling, with successful candidates later recruited into the State medical service. The source material does not report any final government decision on those proposals.
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