Belagavi's JNMC Loses 200 Medical Seats As NMC Cracks Down, Karnataka Sees Overall Dip

Source: The Hindu, Deccan Herald The number of medical seats in Karnataka has dipped by 201 for the academic year 2025–26, primarily due to the National Medical Commission (NMC) withdrawing 200 seats from the prestigious Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College (JNMC), Belagavi. According to a report by The Hindu, the reduction brings this year’s total medical seats in Karnataka down to 12,194 across 70 medical colleges, compared to 12,395 seats in 71 colleges last year. The only other reduction was of a single seat at a medical college in Chitradurga. The impact is significant for Belagavi, where JNMC has long been regarded as a top-tier institution, attracting students from across the country. The non-renewal of its undergraduate and postgraduate seats by NMC comes in the wake of a bribery scandal involving a senior assessor. The assessor, who was reportedly caught accepting a bribe of ₹10 lakh in exchange for a favorable inspection report, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). As a result, the NMC has not only denied renewal of existing seats but also cancelled plans for enhanced intake and the launch of new courses at JNMC for the coming academic year. Photo by Photo By: Kaboompics.com on Pexels.com Further compounding the situation, NMC also turned down Karnataka’s proposal to start three new government medical colleges and increase intake in some existing government colleges, as per The Hindu. Breakdown of the available 12,194 seats includes: 572 under the All India Quota (AIQ) 2,224 under the MCC deemed quota 5,275 in the government quota 2,819 in the private quota 876 in the NRI quota Out of these, 9,263 seats will be allotted through UGNEET-2025 counselling by the Karnataka Examination Authority (KEA), a slight drop from the 9,282 seats allotted last year.