Jaipur

Imagine a childhood dream that once sparkled in your eyes—a doctor wrapped in a white coat, saving lives, earning respect. But today, on the streets of Tamil Nadu, that very doctor is delivering Swiggy parcels or driving an Ola cab. He’s surviving on a meagre ₹25,000 a month—despite holding a degree worth lakhs and years of relentless hard work. Super-specialist doctors, who endured years of rigorous training, now wander jobless, their expertise gathering dust.

This isn’t fiction. It’s the heartbreaking reality of a state once hailed as a model for healthcare. And this nightmare is now knocking at Rajasthan’s door—where, even amid poverty, medical colleges are mushrooming unchecked. If policymakers don’t act now, our healthcare system will collapse faster than Tamil Nadu’s. This isn’t a warning—it’s a desperate cry. Listen, or the next generation will never forgive us.

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Tamil Nadu: Where ‘Becoming a Doctor’ Has Become a Curse

Tamil Nadu, long celebrated as a healthcare leader, has turned into a living hell for doctors. The doctor-to-population ratio here is 1:495—meaning one doctor shoulders the burden of 495 patients. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends 1:1000, yet Tamil Nadu’s oversupply has flipped the script. The result? A devastating storm of unemployment.

• Fresh MBBS graduates in private hospitals earn just ₹25,000–40,000/month—a cruel joke on the 6–7 years of study and crores spent on private seats.
• Dentists fare even worse. With a ratio of 1:3,667, over 97% are trapped in private practice or jobless. Only 5% land government jobs. The rest? Delivering food, driving cabs, or simply lost.
• Super-specialists? They’re on the edge—roaming city to city, their degrees reduced to worthless paper.

This is tragic irony: a progressive state with above-average health spending is pushing thousands of doctors into ruin. Is this progress? No—this is a social crime, crushing the dreams of entire families.

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Rajasthan: Chasing Numbers in Poverty, While Infrastructure Crumbles

Rajasthan, long struggling with basic healthcare, is racing down the same dangerous path. Medical colleges are multiplying rapidly—for the 2025–26 session, the National Medical Commission (NMC) has approved 9,075 new MBBS seats, including 50 in added in places like Tonk. The state now has 34 government medical colleges.

But at what cost?

• 89% of medical colleges lack basic infrastructure—insufficient labs, negligible clinical cases, and severe faculty shortages.
• At Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College in Ajmer, leaking cadaver tanks release toxic fumes.
• New colleges open, but hospital beds, specialist faculty, and research facilities are missing.

Who is approving these? The Rajasthan Medical Council, Dental Council of India, and central government remain silent. The outcome is clear: without urgent intervention, Rajasthan’s health system will collapse faster than Tamil Nadu’s.

Already, 80% of specialist doctor posts in Community Health Centers (CHCs) are vacant. Imagine: a poor state with crumbling basics producing jobless doctors who end up as delivery boys. Heart-wrenching. Horrifying.

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The Global Mirror: Where Development Honors Doctors, Our Policies Humiliate Them

Look at the world:

• USA: 1:384 ratio, average salary ₹2.6 crore/year.
• UK: 1:313, average ₹1.2 crore/year.
• Germany: 1:233, specialists earn up to ₹3.7 crore/year.

These nations don’t just increase numbers—they prioritize quality: research, advanced labs, dignified jobs. Doctors aren’t “human resources”—they’re national assets.

India’s national ratio is 1:834, but in states like Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, imbalance is becoming lethal poison.

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The Alarm Bell: Act Now, or Face Ruin

This isn’t just data—it’s the pain of thousands of NEET students studying on their parents’ sacrifices.

Dear parents: Do you want your child to earn a degree… only to lose their life’s purpose?

To Rajasthan’s government and Jaipur’s policymakers:

• Conduct immediate infrastructure audits.
• Halt new colleges until WHO-NMC standards are met.
• Offer attractive salaries and incentives for specialists in rural CHCs.

Medical and Dental Councils: Rise above unknown influences.

This is a red flag, an alarm shaking society. Media, health workers, medical associations—raise your voice together.

Otherwise, when a patient dies for lack of care tomorrow, we’ll all be guilty.

Rajasthan, wake up! Let Tamil Nadu’s pain not become our future.

This is a moment for sensitivity. For action.
Because only when doctors are respected will the nation survive.