MCC NEET PG counselling 2026: private deemed universities hike fees up to 1,471%

The Medical Counselling Commission (MCC) of the health ministry’s Directorate General of Health Services is conducting the first seat allotment for NEET PG counselling 2026 today, October 24, 2026. This counselling cycle has brought to light substantial fee hikes at private medical colleges and deemed universities across India, with some postgraduate medical courses now costing over Rs 2 crore.

The fee increases, particularly at institutions recently granted deemed-university status, have reignited calls for greater government oversight on fees charged by these institutions. Private deemed universities typically enjoy significant academic and administrative autonomy, which allows them to set higher fees compared to state-affiliated colleges.

Significant Fee Hikes at Deemed Universities

Four medical colleges in Tamil Nadu, which received deemed-to-be university status this year from the education ministry despite state government opposition, have increased their postgraduate medical course fees by as much as 1,471%. These institutions are charging between Rs 25 lakh and Rs 55 lakh per annum in tuition fees for clinical branches, and between zero and Rs 15 lakh per annum for pre- and para-clinical streams. In contrast, the Tamil Nadu fee fixation committee determined an annual fee of Rs 3.5 lakh for clinical government-quota seats and Rs 3 lakh for non-clinical government-quota seats in private self-financed medical colleges. Management quota seats at these colleges cost Rs 16 lakh for clinical and Rs 5 lakh for non-clinical specializations.

Beyond Tamil Nadu, DY Patil University’s medical college in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, reported a 24% single-year hike in its MD Radiodiagnosis fee. The overall programme cost for this course at DY Patil University stands at Rs 2.61 crore, making it the costliest postgraduate course ever recorded. An analysis indicates that 12 out of 54 medical schools under deemed universities participating in MCC NEET PG counselling 2026 will charge over Rs 2 crore for their three-year MD/MS programmes. These fee figures include cumulative tuition fees for the three-year course and major one-time admission charges. Fees for 15% non-resident Indian (NRI)-quota seats are notably higher across institutes.

Regulatory Measures and Challenges

The Supreme Court, on May 22, 2025, mandated pre-counselling fee disclosure by all private and deemed universities for NEET-PG, detailing tuition, hostel, caution deposit, and miscellaneous charges. The National Medical Commission (NMC) Vigilance Cell issued a warning on September 12, 2026, to Deemed Medical Universities, stating that charging fees beyond the published schedule on mcc.nic.in constitutes an infringement of Supreme Court guidelines. The NMC Bill insists that the fee for 50% of seats in private medical colleges and Deemed-to-be Universities must be on par with government medical colleges.

Implementation of the NMC Bill’s fee regulation guidelines has faced challenges. Madhya Pradesh issued a notification on September 13, 2026, for implementing these guidelines for NEET PG 2022 counselling. In Madhya Pradesh, after removing 15% NRI quota seats, admissions on 42.5% of the remaining 85% general pool seats will be at par with government medical college fees. However, private medical colleges in Tamil Nadu and Kerala have challenged the NMC memorandum on 50% fee fixation in High Courts. The Madras High Court questioned the feasibility of cross-subsidization, where 50% of students would pay double fees to cover the other 50%.

Concerns over Seat Blocking and Transparency

The Supreme Court has noted that seat blocking in NEET-PG reflects systemic flaws, a lack of transparency, and weak policy enforcement. Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan of the Supreme Court bench stated, “Seat blocking is not merely an isolated wrongdoing – it reflects deeper systemic flaws rooted in fragmented governance, lack of transparency, and weak policy enforcement.” To address these issues, the Supreme Court mandated a nationally synchronised counselling calendar and directed the establishment of a centralised fee regulation framework under the National Medical Commission. It also permitted upgrade windows after round 2 of counselling, ordered strict penalties for seat blocking including forfeiture of security deposits, and mandated Aadhaar-based seat tracking to prevent multiple seat holdings. A Uniform Counselling Conduct Code across all States and a third-party oversight mechanism under NMC for annual audits of counselling data were also directed.

Past data from Karnataka indicates that hefty fees for PG medical courses reportedly ranged from Rs 1 crore to Rs 10 crore as of February 23, 2019. From 2014 to 2018, at least 2,027 PG medical seats went unfilled in Karnataka, with 306 seats vacant in 2018 and 1,129 in 2017, suggesting a correlation between high fees and vacant seats. The tuition fees for MBBS courses have also seen significant increases, with SRM Medical College’s MBBS tuition fee rising from Rs 9 lakh in 2014 to Rs 21 lakh by August 26, 2016, including development and curriculum fees.

Further reading

• Tamil Nadu NEET PG merit list out: download PDF for 4,654+ MD/MS/Diploma seats
• NEET PG counselling 2026: deemed university tag brings 1,471% fee hike
• NEET PG cutoff: previous closing ranks and marks Next step
• INI CET November 2027 registration status verification closes today, admit cards out October 26
• FMGE October 2026 application correction deadline extended to October 23
• NEET UG 2026: Apply for vacant MBBS seats by Oct 14, 5 PM Applications open

Written by Nishit Kumar

Nishit Kumar is a senior EdTech industry leader with over a decade of experience in building and scaling education platforms, shaping their product, content, and growth strategy. At FindMyCollege, Nishit oversees content and editorial strategy, guiding topic selection and content frameworks to ensure accuracy, relevance, and student-first value across the website.

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