The CAG has criticised Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for granting permission to set up 13 dental colleges despite negative recommendations of the Dental Council and allowing some colleges to function despite faculty shortage and deficient infrastructure.

Criticising the functioning of Dental Council of India (DCI), a statutory body to regulate dental education in the country, the CAG in its performance audit said the Council did not adhere to its own norms of periodic inspection of dental colleges and had no complaint redressal mechanism.

“A total 139 students in six dental colleges and 59 students in nine colleges were given admissions for Bachelor of Dental Surgery and Master of Dental Surgery courses respectively, in excess of the sanctioned number of seats,” the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) pointed out in its audit report.

The CAG also criticised the functioning of the Council for non-adherence to prescribed standards for establishment of new dental colleges, increasing the number of seats in existing dental colleges and renewal of permissions for annual admissions.

It also slammed the Dental Council and Health Ministry for failing to check the skewed distribution of dental colleges across the country.

“The performance audit of the Council covering the period from 2006-11 revealed that there was a concentration of dental colleges in five states and there was only one college in the North-East, indicating skewed distribution of dental colleges across the country, which both the Council and the Ministry failed to prevent,” the CAG said.

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