Hyderabad: With the first phase of NEET-UG MBBS counselling for 2026-27 underway in Telangana, Gandhi Medical College (GMC) has emerged as the top choice among high-ranking candidates, with the state topper (All India Rank (AIR) 83) and the second topper (AIR 158) both opting for the institution in Secunderabad.According to the list released by Kaloji Narayana Rao University of Health Sciences (KNRUHS), four candidates ranked within the top 2,000 secured seats at Gandhi, where the open-category cut-off stood at around 7,535, compared with about 18,251 at Osmania Medical College (OMC).Established govt colleges such as ESIC Medical College (Hyderabad), Kakatiya Medical College (Warangal), Govt Medical College (Nizamabad), Govt Medical College (Mahabubnagar) and Govt Medical College (Siddipet) also recorded higher cut-offs, while newer district colleges in Narayanpet, Kumaram Bheem Asifabad, Jayashankar Bhupalpally, Mulugu and Narsampet saw admissions at ranks over 1.35 lakh.“The preference for older colleges is driven by better infrastructure, hostel facilities, availability of teaching faculty, attached hospitals and greater patient footfall,” a KNRUHS official said.A similar trend was visible among private medical colleges. Established institutions such as Apollo Institute of Medical Sciences, Kamineni Academy of Medical Sciences and Mamata Medical College were preferred, with open-category seats filled at significantly higher ranks, while newer colleges on the outskirts of the city and in districts saw cut-offs extending beyond 1.4 lakh.However, concerns persisted over the 15% All India Quota (AIQ) in govt medical colleges. “This reduces the number of seats available for local aspirants, especially in newer district colleges, and adds pressure on state-quota admissions,” the expert noted.Health officials said the trend underscores the need for accelerated infrastructure development in newer district medical colleges to improve their appeal among aspirants. “In future, the faculty strength, bed capacity, laboratories and hostel facilities will be upgraded in the less sought-after medical colleges, and we are sure students will then increasingly opt for these institutions in future counselling rounds,” a health official said.KNRUHS has released the college-wise allotment list for the first phase of counselling under the competent authority quota, with candidates advised to report to their allotted institutions before the deadline. The university would announce subsequent rounds of counselling based on seat availability and candidate reporting status.
