Overview

• Over 2,000 Indian medical students, predominantly from Kashmir, were evacuated under Operation Sindhu following the Iran-Israel conflict
• Ministry of External Affairs data show about 2,050 Indians enrolled in Iranian medical universities in 2022, with reserved quotas easing admission for Kashmiri applicants
• High competition for domestic MBBS seats and soaring private college fees have pushed many aspirants toward programs costing up to one-tenth as much abroad
• Foreign-trained graduates cleared the 2024 Foreign Medical Graduate Examination at a 25.8% rate, exposing gaps in clinical training and accreditation
• The National Medical Commission now requires a 54-month unified course and one-year internship abroad and faces demands to publish a vetted list of approved overseas colleges