Tamil Nadu to add 6,098 nursing, pharmacy and allied health seats

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay announced on Wednesday that the state will add 6,098 new seats in nursing, pharmacy and paramedical courses at government institutions. The plan includes building seven new nursing colleges at a cost of ₹351 crore.

The expansion will add 2,585 nursing seats — 660 BSc seats at the new colleges and 1,925 more at existing colleges. The state said this is the first such expansion of nursing capacity since 2014. In addition, 2,778 seats will be added across a dozen allied health courses and 735 pharmacy seats.

The announcement was made in the state assembly. Students joining these courses at government colleges will pay lower tuition fees than most private colleges and will have exposure to clinical caseloads at government medical colleges and hospitals. The state also plans to offer German and Japanese language training to prepare students for jobs abroad.