NEWS TODAY 08.07.2026

TN mulls legal action over deemed univ tag for med colleges

TN mulls legal action over deemed univ tag for med colleges 

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 08.07.2026

Chennai : Tamil Nadu is considering legal action, including moving the Supreme Court early next week, after some medical colleges in the state were granted ‘deemed university’ status — a change that could wipe out state quota seats and reshape access to medical education across the region.

Officials said that while 650 MBBS seats are likely to be removed from the state’s seat matrix since allotments to deemed universities are handled by the Centre, three more colleges have told the govt that they are expected to be added to the list soon. These institutions will no longer be obligated to reserve seats for students admitted through the state’s counselling process. “This will mean at least 700 govt quota seats, and more than 50 seats meant for govt school students, will be affected,” a senior health department official said. 

On Tuesday, after day-long discussions with legal experts, a senior legal officer questioned how these institutions were granted the permission, since UGC norms for this status require a high NAAC grade across three cycles, or NBA accreditation for two thirds of programmes, or a top  100 overall or top-50 discipline-specific NIRF ranking for three consecutive years. 

While a legal challenge may take months to resolve, student counsellors and academicians have urged the govt to rein in fees at deemed institutions, as directed by the HC. The state has no control over fees charged by deemed universities, since they fall outside state fee committee’s purview. Under the existing structure, the committee fixed annual MBBS tuition for govt quota seats in self-financing colleges and private universities at ₹4.35 lakh to ₹5.40 lakh, and for management-quota seats at ₹15 lakh to ₹16.2 lakh. 

The Centre has not fixed tuition fees for deemed universities, which charge between ₹20 lakh and ₹35 lakh a year. “Earlier, an association of private universities moved the court to prevent this from being implemented. For some reason, that case was withdrawn. So the state or the Centre must now implement the high court order,” said N Narendran, a NEET coach.  If the govt cannot immediately regulate fees, experts want it to adopt Karnataka’s approach.

 “In Karnataka, deemed universities continue sharing seats with the state govt despite their elevated status. At least six of the 12 deemed universities share around 188 seats with the state quota, at fees ranging from ₹1.5 lakh to ₹6 lakh,” said student counsellor Manickavel Arumugam. “That’s one way to ensure meritorious and govt school students passing out this year are not punished,” he said. 

“For many meritorious students from modest backgrounds, this is a critical pathway into medicine, as they can only afford subsidised, govt-regulated seats,” he added. The state medical university, meanwhile, is appealing to UGC and NMC, stating that it never issued a no-objection certificate for the change in affiliation to these institutions.

NEWS TODAY 07.07.2026

TN may lose 650 MBBS seats, admissions to get tougher, fees set to soar. State health officials say deemed university status granted despite no NOCs

TN may lose 650 MBBS seats, admissions to get tougher, fees set to soar

 

Pushpa.Narayan@timesofindia.com 07.07.2026

Chennai : 07.07.2026

Getting admitted in acollege in Tamil Nadu will be harder and more expensive this academic year. At least 650 MBBS seats will be removed from the state’s seat matrix in 2026, as three colleges have been conferred deemed university status. Officials in the health department said the number could double, as at least three more colleges have told the state they are expecting University Grants Commission’s approval soon.

 Admissions to all self-financing medical colleges affiliated to Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University and state private universities are done by the state selection committee. The National Medical Commission website now lists St Peter’s Medical College (250 seats) and two other institutions — Dhanalakshmi Srinivasan Institute of Medical Sciences and Srinivasan Medical College (400 seats) — as deemed universities. 

 State health officials say deemed university status granted despite no NOCs

 A senior health official said, “Until now, these institutions shared 50-65% of seats with the state for admission under govt quota, including 7.5% for govt school students. At least 350 govt quota seats, including 25 under the 7.5% quota, will be a big loss.” 

If three more colleges are granted deemed university status, the number will cross 700 govt quota seats and 50 seats under the 7.5% quota. Karpaga Vinayaga Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre has announced deemed status on its website, while NMC’s records still list it as affiliated to TN Dr MGR Medical University. 

Admission to MBBS seats in deemed universities is done by the central Medical Counselling Committee (MCC), for students across the country. Besides competing with students nationwide, aspirants will have to pay at least ₹20 lakh a year as tuition fees. Under the existing fee structure, annual tuition at private colleges has been fixed by a panel at ₹4.35 lakh to ₹5.40 lakh for govtquota seats in self-financing colleges and state private universities, and ₹15 lakh to ₹16.20 lakh for managementquota seats. 

Fees for students from govt colleges is paid by the govt. Centre has not fixed a tuition fee for deemed universities, which charge anywhere between ₹20 lakh and ₹35 lakh a year. State health officials said they would write to Centre stating that deemed university status has been granted to affiliated colleges despite objections from the state university. 

Ever since the TN Dr MGR Medical University vice-chancellor stepped down in May, the university has been managed by a five-member committee. “No objection certificate from the university is mandatory to get deemed university status. We have not issued it to anyone,” said Dr S Pushkala, member of the university’s administration committee. 

Officials from St Peter Institute of Higher Education and Research said the status came after a legal battle. The institution moved Delhi high court against UGC and TN Dr MGR Medical University after its bid to convert its Hosur medical college into an off-campus centre was blocked. In 2025, HC ruled in the institution’s favour on a narrow procedural ground — the university’s refusal letter, though dated within the mandatory 60-day window, was communicated to the college six days after the deadline lapsed.

 HC held the university’s consent was deemed granted by default, and quashed UGC’s rejection and the university’s NOC refusal. “We have appealed against this order. We don’t know how other colleges got deemed university status,” said Dr Pushkala. 

The state health department said it applied to NMC for increase in 50 seats each in govt medical colleges in Tirupur, Tiruvallur and Namakkal. “The inspections have been completed. We are awaiting their nod,” a senior official said. 

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NEWS TODAY 06.07.2026