Representative image. Vishnoi M, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Why it matters
More MD and MS seats mean more places for doctors who cleared NEET PG this year, and over time more trained specialists. But the new courses and extra seats still need MARB permission letters, which the NMC will issue only after colleges file bank guarantees, and counselling bodies may admit only against the latest approved list.
India will have 68,305 postgraduate (PG) medical seats in broad specialities such as general medicine, surgery and paediatrics for the 2026-27 academic year. The National Medical Commission (NMC), the regulator for medical education, released an updated PG medical seats list on 6 November 2026. Dr M K Ramesh, who heads the NMC’s Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB), told the Times of India that 9,783 seats had been added, up from 58,522.
That is the pool of MD (Doctor of Medicine) and MS (Master of Surgery) seats that doctors who cleared NEET PG (National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for postgraduate courses), the national entrance exam for postgraduate medicine, are now competing for in counselling. The NMC’s notice with the matrix also set conditions for colleges and for the bodies that run counselling.
Where the 9,783 new PG medical seats went
Government colleges got the largest share of the new PG medical seats. According to Dr Ramesh’s figures in the Times of India report, 4,373 of the new seats are in government medical colleges, 4,148 in private colleges and 1,262 in deemed universities. The three numbers add up to 9,783.
| Type of college | New seats for 2026-27 | Share of the increase |
|---|---|---|
| Government | 4,373 | 44.7% |
| Private | 4,148 | 42.4% |
| Deemed university | 1,262 | 12.9% |
| Total added | 9,783 | 100% |
On the same figures, the national pool of PG medical seats grows by about 16.7% in one year (9,783 added to 58,522), by NewsPlainly’s calculation.
The full matrix tells a slightly different story about who holds the seats overall. Careers360, which went through the updated NEET PG seat matrix, counted 34,473 seats in government institutions (50.5% of the total), 24,732 in private institutions (36.2%) and 9,100 in deemed institutions (13.3%). So government colleges still hold about half of all PG seats, while private and deemed colleges together took more than half of this year’s increase.
What the NMC told colleges and counselling bodies
The NEET PG seat matrix came with a public notice dated 6 November. As Careers360 reported it, the notice does four things:
- Bank guarantee within 7 days. Colleges approved for new PG courses or more seats must submit an electronic bank guarantee (e-BG) within seven days of the notice and email the details to MARB.
- Permission only after that. MARB will issue the Letter of Permission-cum-Disapproval (LoP-cum-LoD), the formal go-ahead for the new course or extra seats, only after it has received and verified the guarantee.
- Counselling follows the latest list. Central, state and union territory counselling authorities must use the latest notified matrix. If they find a mismatch, they must ask MARB, and they cannot allow admissions beyond the approved seats.
- Colleges must check their own entries. Any error or missing course has to be reported to MARB at once. Admitting students beyond the approved intake can invite action under the NMC Act, 2019.
The notice also says the matrix can change after later decisions by MARB, an appeal authority or another competent authority, and that a revised version on the NMC website replaces the earlier one where it differs.
Why the state-wise NEET PG seat matrix numbers differ
Readers looking for their own state’s count of PG medical seats will find different numbers in different reports. The Times of India put Karnataka first with 8,998 seats, followed by Maharashtra (7,682), Uttar Pradesh (6,983), Tamil Nadu (6,819) and Telangana (4,417). Careers360’s state table, built from the same matrix, has Karnataka at 8,817, Maharashtra at 7,305 and Uttar Pradesh at 6,829. The order of the top states is broadly the same; the exact counts are not.
NewsPlainly could not open the NMC notice itself on the commission’s website at the time of checking, so this article does not pick one set of state figures. The safest source for a state count is the latest matrix on the NMC website, which the notice says overrides earlier versions.
One state has given its own figure. Maharashtra’s Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif said on 6 November that the state now has 7,615 PG broad-speciality seats, 1,066 more than last year’s 6,549, a rise of 16.3%, Careers360 reported. The state said its 23 government medical colleges gained a net 720 MD and MS seats between 29 September and 6 November.
What this means for NEET PG counselling 2026
For candidates in NEET PG counselling 2026, the main point is that counselling bodies have been told to work from the newest notified list and not to admit beyond it. The notice also ties new courses and extra seats to two steps at the college’s end: the bank guarantee, then MARB’s permission letter.
The reports read for this article did not say which counselling round will first include the new seats, or how many of the 9,783 have already received permission letters. Candidates will need to watch the NEET PG seat matrix published by the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) for all-India quota seats and by their state’s counselling authority for state quota seats before each round.
Separately, a 12-member panel has proposed a NEET PG rank system without percentiles, which NewsPlainly reported earlier.
The numbers in one place
Last year’s approved intake of PG medical seats in broad specialities was 58,522, according to MARB’s president. This year’s is 68,305. Of the 9,783 extra seats, roughly 45 in every 100 are in government colleges. Overall, about half of all PG seats are in government institutions, according to Careers360’s reading of the matrix.
Frequently asked questions
How many PG medical seats are there in India for 2026-27?
68,305 broad-speciality PG seats, according to the NMC's updated seat matrix of 6 November 2026, as reported by the Times of India and Careers360.
How many PG medical seats were added this year?
9,783, up from 58,522 last year, MARB president Dr M K Ramesh told the Times of India. That is about 16.7% more, by NewsPlainly's calculation.
Will the new seats be offered in NEET PG counselling 2026?
The NMC has told counselling authorities to use the latest notified matrix and not to admit beyond approved seats. The reports read did not say which round will first include the new seats.