Today India has more than 780 medical colleges, and about 64 standalone postgraduate institutes. There are more than 70,000 hospitals in India. Healthcare system in India is ancient. We first interacted with modern medicine through Portuguese physicians. However, British East India Company (EIC) established first hospitals. First modern hospital was Cogan’s house (west 1664) in Fort St George (current Chennai). Built for the company officials and soldiers, it shifted many locations in next 100 years. EIC build another hospital in Fort Williams (current Kolkata) – Presidency hospital in 1707.
A Portuguese doctor Manoel Roiz de Sousa was were the first to initiate some sort of medical teaching in Goa in 1691. Portuguese medical school is forefather of Goa Medical College.
Britishers established early native medical schools in Calcutta (1822) and Bombay (1826). Meanwhile, French had established Ecole de medicine de Pondicherry in 1823. This French medical school is a forefather of JIPMER Pondicherry. These efforts were either intermittent or unstructured. These efforts gave way to more structured and sustainable options in later years.
First Medical Colleges in India: Calcutta
Lord William Bentinck Governor General of India in 1833, set up a committee to assess need for a medical college in India. On committee’s recommendation in January 1835, East India Company established Calcutta Medical College. In the same month, Governor General ordered closure of previously established Native medical institute. Calcutta Medical College had 49 students in the first batch. First girl student was admitted to the college about 50 years later, in the year 1883.
Second is not far away: Madras
Next month, in February 1835 Governor of Madras Sir Frederick Adams set up Madras Medical school, renamed as Madras Medical College on 1st October 1850. East India Company established this institution in the premises of Cogan House, Fort St George- the oldest hospital in India. It had its first girl students in the year 1875.
Bombay get a medical college too !!
Sir Robert Grant, Governor of Bombay wanted to establish a medical college. He first established a Medical and Physical Society of Bombay in 1834. Only two years ago, a previously established Native Medical School of Bombay had closed down. In 1838, East India Company accepted proposal to establish a medical college. Robert Grant, died a month before this acceptance. Thus, East India Company named first medical college of Bombay in memory of Robert Grant as Grant’s Medical College. Medical colleges need an accompanying hospital. Sir Jamshedjee Jeejeebhoy gave a donation of Rs one lakh to set up a hospital, we know today as JJ hospital.
In 1857, we had three medical colleges. This was a turbulent time of first war of India’s independence. Governance changed hands. Company rule ended. British established their direct rule through a viceroy. British set up a third medical college in Lahore in 1860. Thereafter, it would take five decades for the next medical college.
Medical colleges vs Medical schools
Meanwhile, need for support personnel in health-care was growing. There was also a need to train doctors in indigenous systems of medicine. A few medical schools (rather than colleges) filled this void. British government established Sealdah (later Campbell) medical school in 1873, and Calcutta school of medicine in 1886. Later these medical schools would become NRS (1948) and RG Kar (1916) medical colleges of today.
Meanwhile, many medical schools were set up in Agra, Indore, Bombay, and Madras. They offered courses in nursing, midwifery, apothecary and laboratory sciences.
In 1900, three colleges at Calcutta, Madras and Lahore had their own names for their medical qualifications. Basic degree was Licentiate in Medicine and Surgery (LMS), and an advanced degree was Doctor of Medicine (MD). In 1906, Bombay University came up with MB, & BS for Medicine Baccalaureus, & Bachelor of Surgery. This mix-match of latin and English became MBBS of today. Baccalaureus has an interesting etymology. It comes from Latin bacca (“berry”)and laurea (“laurel”). Graduates in those days wore laurel crowns filled with berries, a fruit that would symbolise the fruit of their study.
LMS became an inferior qualification to MBBS. Colleges gradually phased it out. MD /MS became a superior qualification. Those doctors who went to England for more studies were FRCP and FRCS. We have lived with these names till today.
King George
Maharaja of Vijaynagar wanted to establish a medical college in Lucknow in 1870. He had no funds. British government took took up this task in 1905, and next year Prince of Wales laid foundation of the new college. In 1911, King George V visited India, to inaugurate New Delhi. The same year, he gave his name to the new institute – King George Medical College or KGMC. KGMC had a brief stint of a name change, as also indicated on its postage stamp. We know it today as King George Medical University.
Lady Hardinge
In 1911, British moved to their new capital to Delhi. Wife of Viceroy Charles Hardinge, Winifred Sturt or Lady Hardinge wanted to establish India’s first Women’s medical college. British government agreed to this request. In 1914, British Government inaugurated a college in the heart of New Delhi. Lady Hardinge had died earlier in 1914. This college was to be named as Queen Mary college, became Lady Hardinge Medical College. In 1916 it started teaching with its first batch of sixteen students. Initially the hospital attached to the college was also meant only for women. It started treating men only after 1991.
India-post issued a special cover in 2005, commemorating her, and MGIMS Sevagram
Regulatory bodies for Medical Education and Research
In 1911, British Government established Indian Research Fund Association (IRFA). Later, in 1949, Government of Independent India renamed it as Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). ICMR has conducted and supported Medical research in various medical institutions. It is one of the oldest medical research bodies in the world.
Doctors trained in modern medicine, established a professional body named Medical council of India (MCI) in 1933. Initially, the purpose of this body was to maintain a list of all MBBS trained doctors. This list is known as Indian Medical Register. Later it adopted additional roles, such as ethics, and regulation of quality of medical education. In 2020, Government dissolved MCI, and has established a National Medical Commission (NMC) in its place. NMC performs all the functions of erstwhile MCI, and maintains a list of medical colleges and medical doctors.
Nationalism in Medical Education
In early 20th century access to medical education was limited. Established medical colleges admitted only selected medical students. Indian doctors, who were well trained were not accepted as faculty in these colleges. This prompted nationalist medical colleges to be set up. RG Kar Medical College in Calcutta (1916), GS Seth medical college in Bombay (1925), and Mysore medical college in Mysore (1924) were such institutes.
In 1920 in Hyderabad, Nizam was able to get recognition for a medical college. Erstwhile Hyderabad medical school, was now a college. These institutions were not controlled by the British, and provided more opportunities for Indian doctors and students.
British Government established two more medical colleges. In 1923 Vizagapatam medical college, and in 1925 Prince of Wales Medical College in Patna. Today we know them as Andhra Medical College and Patna Medical College respectively.
Medical colleges by the time of independence
More medical colleges were set up during and after the Second World War. We required more doctors, and healthcare need was recognized by the governments.
Postage stamp on Assam Medical College Dibrugarh issued in 2022. It was first medical college in North Eastern India, inaugurated in 1947. Stamp from Monaco shows Dr Prakash Amte and Dr Mandakini Amte, alumni of Government Medical College Nagpur
Institutes of Mental Health
British had established many mental asylums. These were later converted to institutes of Mental health, and provide training in the field
Post independence medical institutes
Growing India needed more medical colleges, and many new colleges were set up in the first 25 years of our independence.
Medical colleges established within last 50 years – no Golden Jubilee yet
The following philately gallery is about the colleges that are yet to complete 50 years. Please watch this space as we add more to the list.
Gallery of Indian hospitals
Many Indian hospitals also have a philately presence. Enjoy the gallery below.
Apollo Hospitals : A series of covers and My Stamps
Newer Hospitals in Special Covers
Very Informative.
Very interesting.
Overwhelming to go through glorious history of medical science in indian sub-continent.
Surprised to see the foresightness of britishers to establish a women medical college in india.
Very informative and interesting article. Great work
Excellent collection and write up sir
Informative
Very Informative and interesting write up…. Thanks Sir for this piece of information🙏👏👌👍
Good work !
Very interesting post Sir.
Very interesting to read these. A rich collection.
Thank you very much for a lucid description of the evolution of medical colleges in India through postal stamps. We have indeed come a long way & more glory to the future of medical education in India. The blog made me nostalgic reading on about Institutions of which i am an alumni.
Wonderful facts
Wonderful walk through of history of medical colleges in India!! Very well researched!!
Quite an interesting read Sir!
Very Interesting to read about the evolution of medical Colleges , Sir