Telangana's Health Minister T Harish Rao spoke at the graduation ceremony of the class of 2017 at Gandhi Medical College, Hyderabad, on Sunday, August 13, stated a report in The New Indian Express. He called upon the young doctors to serve the needy by joining government hospitals. 

The health minister also shared plans of initiating reservation quotas in postgraduate (PG) programmes for those who are serving at government healthcare institutions. 

He also spoke about the nominal fees charged from medical students and the substantial stipends they receive. 

When compared to medical students from other states, postgraduate students of Telangana receive Rs 58,000 in their first year of medical education. While in Andhra Pradesh, the students receive Rs 50,000, Rs 45,000 in Karnataka, Rs 55,000 in Kerala and Rs 48,000 in Tamil Nadu. 

The health minister also took the opportunity to announce upcoming initiatives including specialised centres and super-speciality MCH service, which will be inaugurated on August 16 at the Gandhi Medical College. 

Minister Harish Rao shared, "I am pleased to declare that Telangana holds the distinction of being the Number 1 state in the country, boasting 22 MBBS seats per lakh of the population. In the realm of postgraduate studies, Telangana ranks second with 8 seats per lakh." 

He also highlighted plans for the Telangana Institute of Medical Sciences (TIMs) which would be in alignment with the All India Institutes of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).