He pointed out that the Union government's Directorate General of Health Services has not reduced the qualifying percentile, adding that Tamil Nadu has 40 super-speciality seats exclusively meant for in-service doctors.

Citing the Supreme Court's direction pronounced on Thursday in the Tamil Nadu Medical Officers Association case, stating that the qualifying percentile for super-speciality seats should be reduced, Stalin appealed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to intervene immediately and reduce it to zero percentile, as had been done in earlier years.

"The Union government must also allow states to independently reduce the percentile for their in-service quota when seats remain vacant," Stalin said.

Terming public health a constitutional responsibility of the states, he said not a single medical seat, which is a precious national resource, should be allowed to go to waste when people need more specialist doctors.

The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Centre to reconsider its decision not to lower the minimum qualifying percentile for admission to super-speciality medical courses. The court noted the large number of vacant seats and directed the Centre to revisit its stance. The matter will be heard next on September 17, 2026.

A Bench comprising Justice Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha and Justice Alok Aradhe observed that the Centre's decision may need to be reconsidered in view of the seats that have remained vacant.