Government Medical College (GMC) Handwara has secured accreditation for 24 Diplomate of National Board (DNB) seats in seven departments, while approval for several diploma seats is still pending.
The accreditation, granted by the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences (NBEMS), is valid until December 2029. The makeshift campus at Handwara Bypass Road has been allotted seats in Medicine (5), Surgery (2), Paediatrics (5), Pathology (4), Pharmacology (2), Social and Preventive Medicine (2), and Anaesthesia (4).
Notably, inspections for Emergency Medicine and Family Medicine departments have already been conducted for DNB courses, but the final assessment is still awaited. In addition, the college is expecting diploma seats in Gynaecology, Anaesthesia, Paediatrics, and Radiology, for which inspections have been completed and assessments are likely to be finalized within four weeks.
Officials said all 24 seats cleared so far fall under the DNB programme. The approval is expected to strengthen both postgraduate medical education and specialist healthcare services in north Kashmir.
“This is a milestone for GMC Handwara. Having postgraduate seats will not only enhance academic standards but also improve patient care in this border areas,” a senior faculty member told Rising Kashmir.
The recognition is seen as a step forward for the relatively new institution, which is still functioning from its makeshift campus. Once the pending diploma seats are approved, GMC Handwara will expand its capacity further as a postgraduate training centre, drawing more young doctors and reducing the referral load on tertiary hospitals in Srinagar.
