Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute (BMCRI), KR Road

NOTE: Admissions are conducted through Karnataka CET and AIPMT scores only. No admissions happen through UGET (COMEDK) scores.

Location:

As the title suggests, Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute (BMCRI) is located on KR Road very close to the city market in central Bangalore. Getting to the college is a cakewalk from any part of the city; just ask which BMTC bus takes you to “market” and 9 out of 10 people would know. Some of the buses that ply around this place include selected bus numbers amongst series of 31, 36, 45, 210, 211, 212, 215, 221, 242, 263, 285, 306, 313, 350 and many more adding up to a hundred-odd buses.

Infrastructure:

Bangalore Medical College is an autonomous institute of the Government of Karnataka and to expect air-conditioned classrooms or labs at a government college would perhaps be considered foolish. But however unbelievable it may sound, ALL classrooms at Bangalore Medical College are air-conditioned! Other than a short delay in procuring new edition books and a shortage of chairs in the library and the reading room, the college gives no opportunity for complaints as far as academics are concerned. Things that bother some students here include improper drinking water facilities and restrooms, lack of an appropriate playground, and other such non-academic issues.

“Hostels could have been the most vulnerable to erroneous management, but fortunately it’s handled by us and is, thus, very well maintained” says a group of students. The living cost for the hostel comes up to around Rs. 20,000/- per year or even lesser. “Mess food still needs to improve and we’re working on that.” However, that's only the boys' hostel; the girls' hostel is still managed by the college authorities and stays in a state of disarray. “It’s disgusting! Rats are seen running around and often into our rooms as well!” says an occupant of the girls’ hostel.

Fees:

Rs. 12,000/- per year ONLY!

Faculty:

Students claim that the more experienced faculty which actually created a reputation for Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute (BMCRI) have now either retired or have attained the age of retirement. The new teachers obviously aren’t able to teach that well. Another deterrent factor is that many professors have their own private practice and if something’s not going right there, it adversely affects their mood and teaching quality at the college.

Administration is exactly like most other Government-run offices, takes a hell lot of time to get some formality done.

Attendance:

Overall the attendance is comfortably liberal but it varies from department to department. Except for ENT and Surgery, even a 60-65% is enough to get through although above 80% is recommended by the college.

Crowd:

Wonk, nerd, geek, bookworm... call them what you want, but they’ll still remain indifferent and continue studying at the reading room. Absolutely no social life, no entertainment. Exceptions live a hard life here, mostly dragging their classmates out of the reading room on occasions of festivals at college or a casual mass bunk.

Canteen:

The canteen is not worth eating and most students prefer going to the Bangalore Institute of Technology (BIT) canteen, a stone’s throw from the Medical College (and more importantly for the more ‘colourful’ crowd).

Hangouts:

Even though Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute (BMCRI) is centrally located, there’s not a single place in close proximity where you can actually hangout and kill time.

Festivals:

“Cobalt Skies” a huge festival celebrated sometime in October is an intercollege event and one of the biggest amongst medical colleges in Bangalore.

Hospitals Affiliated:

The parent hospital, Victoria General Hospital, is a 10-minute walk from the college and it is one of the biggest and busiest hospitals in Bangalore. Exposure to every kind of medical case cannot be better than here. Often there are too few people to handle the abundance of cases reported here and life becomes too stressful during the internship period. Yet the students don’t seem to mind as the experience they get is worth every hardship they face.

Other than the parent hospital, students are also posted at Minto Eye Hospital, Bowring & Lady Curzon Hospital and another maternity hospital for a limited period.

Contact:

Bangalore Medical College & Research Institute (BMCRI),
Fort, KR Road, Bangalore – 560002
Phone: 080 26700810
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Website: www.bmcri.org

Verdict:

Bangalore Medical College definitely falls into the top 3 medical colleges in Bangalore and over exposure to practical medical experience keeps it in that position despite the numerous shortcomings.