KATHMANDU: Private medical college directors have voiced strong objections to the Medical Education Commission’s (MEC) recent decision to provide a monthly maintenance allowance of Rs 48,737 (equivalent to government level 8) to postgraduate (PG) resident doctors.
Speaking at a press conference in Kathmandu on Wednesday, representatives of the Association of Private Medical and Dental Colleges of Nepal said that the decision — made at the commission’s 16th meeting — is not practically viable without proper financial support.
Association President Dr. Gyanendra Man Singh Karki clarified that while the colleges support the idea of financially assisting PG students, they lack the resources to sustain the proposed stipend under the current fee structure.
“We’ve clearly stated we are ready to pay even one rupee more than Rs 48,737, but our financial limitations make this impossible,” he said. “From the Rs 2.3 million students pay for their PG studies, only Rs 2 million reaches the colleges, while the rest goes to the university and the commission.”
Karki explained that paying students a monthly allowance of Rs 58,737 over three years would leave colleges with only Rs 16,100 in total to conduct the entire teaching program for each student — an amount he described as unsustainable.
Nepali Congress MP and Kathmandu Medical College Director Dr. Sunil Sharma echoed similar concerns. He said the issue is not just about the Rs 48,000 stipend, but about attempts to systematically weaken private medical colleges through policies that prevent admissions and force students abroad.
“Middlemen are trying to destroy private medical institutions for personal gain,” Sharma alleged. He warned that if the decision is enforced as a mandatory policy, up to 800 eligible students might be deprived of studying MBBS next year.
Both Sharma and Karki stressed that while they are open to a new model of student support, it must be backed by a realistic and supportive financial framework.
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