SMVDIME to admit first batch of MBBS students in 2025-26

The Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME) in Jammu and Kashmir has been granted approval to admit 50 MBBS students from the academic year 2025-26.

The medical college, run by the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board, had started functioning in Reasi district last year and is now preparing to welcome its first batch.

Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha welcomed the decision, acknowledging the support of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Health Minister J P Nadda.

“Grateful to Honourable PM Shri Narendra Modi Ji and Honourable Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Shri J P Nadda Ji for sanctioning 50 MBBS seats for the newly established Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME),” Sinha wrote on X.

He explained that the addition of MBBS seats will expand opportunities for aspiring doctors within the Union Territory while also strengthening medical infrastructure.

“Our aim is to help more MBBS aspirants study in the UT, and we have made significant strides in this area by increasing MBBS seats in the past few years. These achievements will ensure greater access to specialised care and build a stronger healthcare system,” he said.

Plans for the institute were cleared in August 2023, when the shrine board approved the establishment of a medical college at Kakryal with an initial intake of 50 students and a roadmap to double capacity in the future.

Executive Director of SMVDIME, Dr Yaspaul Sharma, said counselling for admissions has already begun and classes are expected to start shortly.

The medical college is affiliated with Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University, and until the campus is fully built, it is operating from the university’s administrative block.

Students will receive practical training at the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Narayana Superspeciality Hospital, which will serve as the teaching hospital.

The facility offers nearly 26 specialties, providing medical trainees with broad exposure during their studies.

Officials said the project represents a major step toward expanding access to quality medical education in Jammu and Kashmir, while also increasing the number of trained professionals available to serve underserved regions.