Tamil Nadu will establish seven new government nursing colleges to expand BSc Nursing admissions by 660 seats. The plan adds six colleges across districts with an annual intake of 100 students each and includes a seventh institution in Coimbatore with an intake of 60 students, according to reports.

The six new colleges are planned for Namakkal, Tiruchirappalli, Dharmapuri, Vellore, Tiruvannamalai and Tirunelveli, while the Coimbatore college is linked to the Government Medical College and ESI Hospital. A Tamil Nadu government order dated September 16 sets out the initiative and allocates an expenditure of Rs 270.26 crore, to be met by the Tamil Nadu Dr M G R Medical University. The colleges use existing facilities at the respective medical colleges to accommodate admissions for the current academic year.

Context described by outlets is that the move follows Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s announcement in the Assembly. One report also notes that Vijay says no new government nursing colleges were started since 2014 and that the state previously announced additional admissions in other programmes to meet staffing needs. The reports largely align on the seat additions; they differ mainly in the amount of broader policy detail included.