A total of 10,22,859 doctors were registered with the Medical Council of India (MCI) and State Medical Councils (SMCs) till March 31, 2017, Parliament was informed on Tuesday.

The highest number of doctors are registered with Maharashtra Medical Council at 1,53,513, while the lowest are with Arunachal Pradesh Medical Council, where the figure stands at 792, said Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Faggan Singh Kulaste in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.The number of doctors registered with the MCI is 52,666.

According to the Minister, the MCI has clearly stated that no specific date of foreign medical graduates registered with the MCI or SMC before 2007 is available with the council.However, since 2007, the MCI generated computerised registration certificate and as per the available recorded from 2007 till mid-2014, a total of 12,858 permanent registrations were granted by the MCI in respect of Indian nationals who possess primary medical qualification from various universities outside the country.