68,305 PG seats in 2026-27: what NMC's updated seat matrix means for Round 2 and state cut-offs

India has 68,305 PG broad-speciality seats for 2026-27, according to the updated seat matrix that NMC's Medical Assessment and Rating Board (MARB) published on 6 November. The NMC seat matrix covers MD, MS, diploma and six-year MCh seats, and NMC has told every counselling authority to use only the latest notified version.

For students in Round 2 this is not just a big number. It decides how many seats are in play in AIQ and state rounds, which branches grew, and where cut-offs may move. Here is what the matrix says and what we think it means.

The headline numbers

Source: NMC MARB seat matrix, 6 Nov 2026, as reported by Medical Dialogues; MD/MS/diploma totals calculated by Career Paathshala from the branch table. Govt/private/deemed split from our database's reading of the same matrix.

Just over half the seats (50.5%) are in government colleges. That matters because only half of each government college's seats go to the All India Quota through MCC; the rest go to state counselling. Deemed universities are counselled 100% by MCC.

Is it really 5,000 more seats?

NMC's earlier matrix, dated 29 September, showed 63,177 seats. That suggests a rise of about 5,100. But the September figure was reported as including DM and MCh seats, while the November figure covers broad-speciality seats only. So the two totals are not strictly like-for-like, and the true broad-speciality rise could be slightly larger. NMC says super-speciality additions will come in a later update.

Gen Medicine

6,983

Anaesthesia

6,419

Gen Surgery

6,349

OBG

5,466

Paediatrics

4,893

Orthopaedics

4,366

Pathology

3,942

Radiology

3,768

Ophthalmology

2,848

Community Med

2,518

Values in seats

Source: NMC MARB seat matrix, 6 Nov 2026 (via Medical Dialogues).

Branch by branch: where the seats are

Sources: seat counts from the NMC matrix (6 Nov 2026) via Medical Dialogues; closing ranks from MCC 2026 Round 1 data, analysed by Career Paathshala.

Read the two columns together and a pattern appears. Seat count does not decide how hard a branch is. Radiology has 3,768 seats but closed at AIR 3,058 in Round 1. Anaesthesia has about 1.7 times the seats and closed eight times deeper, at 24,614. Demand drives cut-offs far more than supply.

That demand is lopsided. In MCC's 2026 Round 1, 233 of the top 501 ranks (46%) chose Medicine and 149 chose Radiology. Only 25 chose Surgery. OBG's last Open govt seat went to AIR 14,190, against 9,714 the year before, and only 1 of the top 100 ranks picked it.

Where the big branches are concentrated

Karnataka leads all three of the largest branches: 921 Medicine seats, 803 Anaesthesia seats and 789 Surgery seats. Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu follow in each. If you have domicile in one of these states, your state quota is where the volume sits.

Branch	Seats 2026-27	Last Open govt AIQ seat, 2026 R1 (AIR)
General Medicine	6983	4703
Anaesthesiology	6419	24614
General Surgery	6349	14012
OBG	5466	14190
Paediatrics	4893	9574
Orthopaedics	4366	15591
Pathology	3942	46664
Radiodiagnosis	3768	3058
Dermatology	2279	5628

Sources: NMC matrix (6 Nov 2026); MCC 2026 Round 1 data, analysed by Career Paathshala.

State additions this month

Two states have published their gains:

Sources: Medical Dialogues, 10 Nov 2026 (Andhra Pradesh) and 11 Nov 2026 (Odisha, citing a state statement via PTI).

In AP, GMC Vizianagaram gained the most government seats (28) and Konaseema Institute of Medical Sciences the most private seats (59). In Odisha, Fakir Mohan Medical College, Balasore went from 8 to 54 PG seats and Bhima Bhoi Medical College, Balangir from 10 to 54.

34,473

Government

24,732

Private

9,100

Deemed

+424

Andhra Pradesh added

+318

Odisha added

Sources: NMC matrix, 6 Nov 2026; Medical Dialogues, 10-11 Nov 2026.

What it means for Round 2 and state cut-offs

For AIQ Round 2. New seats reach MCC only after colleges get their Letter of Permission and MCC adds them to its matrix. MCC's 12 November "newly added seats" list for Round 2 holds 3,678 seats across 324 institutions by our count, led by Medicine (302), Surgery (258), Pathology (254) and Anaesthesia (250). More seats in the same pool usually push closing ranks deeper, but we cannot say by how much, and no one can promise a rank.

For state Round 2. Private-college seats are generally filled through state counselling, so AP's 262 new private seats and similar additions elsewhere mostly show up in state rounds. The state Round 2 window runs from 14 to 23 November under the national schedule. Watch your state's revised seat matrix before you fill choices.

First-batch colleges. Odisha's five new government colleges will run their first PG batches. They offer govt fees and stipends, but there are no seniors to learn from and no exit-exam track record. Residents interviewed on HealthPil and Doctor's Desk advise checking patient footfall, OT days and faculty before you lock any seat, and that matters most where the department is brand new.

The money angle

A new seat's sector matters more than its novelty. Government stipends in our database range from about Rs 42,000 to Rs 1.27 lakh a month depending on the state. Typical deemed fees run about Rs 30-50 lakh a year in clinical branches; three years of MD Anaesthesia at a deemed university costs about Rs 90 lakh in tuition alone. Doctors on HealthPil describe Anaesthesia as a stable pick for first-generation doctors because jobs come right after PG, but that does not make a crore-sized loan sensible.

What this means for you

• Rank under 10,000: The extra seats make little difference to Radiology, Medicine or Dermatology at top govt colleges, where demand is intense. Focus on your order of preference.
• Rank 10,000 to 30,000: This is where added seats help most, especially in Anaesthesia, Surgery, OBG and Orthopaedics, which have large seat pools and closed between 14,000 and 25,000 in Round 1. Fill these honestly if you would study them.
• Rank 30,000 to 80,000: Look closely at para-clinical branches with big pools, such as Pathology (3,942 seats, Round 1 close at 46,664) and Community Medicine (2,518 seats), and at the strongest DNB centres.
• Domiciled in AP, Odisha or another state that grew: Your state Round 2 has more seats than Round 1. Check the state's updated matrix before you fill choices.
• Considering paid seats: Count the full three-year cost before you look at the added seat totals.

Want to see seat counts, closing ranks and residency life side by side? Use Know Your Branch, or book a counselling call with our team.

Change log: Published 14 Nov 2026