Planning a trip to London to take the MRCS examination? Rework your travel plans and head for Kolkata.

The British Council, Kolkata, has now become the second overseas centre for the MRCS (Member of Royal College of Surgeons of England) examination. The other one outside London is in Cairo, Egypt.

The Kolkata centre will have the right to hold inter-collegiate MRCS Part 1 and II examinations.

Inter-collegiate MRCS has now replaced the Collegiate MRCS examination, whose phasing out process will be completed by end of 2004, according to a statement from the British Council, Kolkata.

The new MRCS has three papers of which two (Part 1: Applied Basic Sciences and Part 2: Clinical Problem Solving) can now be taken by medical graduates in Kolkata.

The examinations will be held on January 14, 2005, April 26, 2005 and September 12, 2005.

The registration for Part 1 and 2 has begun and is open till October 15. The fees for the two part exam has been fixed at Rs12,500 each.

MRCS Part 3 (Viva and Clinical), however, will have to be taken in England.