Maha Private Medical Colleges Resume MBBS Admissions After State Assures to Clear Pending Fee Reimbursement

Mumbai: In a relief to the medical and dental aspirants, the private medical and dental colleges in Maharashtra resumed MBBS and BDS admissions in the State on Saturday.

The admission process resumed after the State Government assured the self-financed institutes regarding the pending dues owed to various departments for reimbursement of fees against various scholarship schemes, Indian Express has reported.

Although the Association of Managements of Unaided Private Medical and Dental Colleges (AMUPMDC) informed the State's Secretary of Medical Education about their decision to resume admissions, it also highlighted the requirement for concrete actions and a review meeting with the Government before the commencement of medical Post-Graduate (PG) admissions. 

Therefore, there is a possibility that similar disruptions would be caused to the admission process for the PG medical courses if the State does not meet its commitments.

Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that AMUPMDC on October 3 halted the MBBS/BDS admissions at the private medical institutes in the State highlighting the pendency of hundreds of crores of rupees in the form of reimbursement of fees. 

The association had informed the Government that the pending fee reimbursement was damaging the "sustainability" and functioning of the colleges. AMUPMDC's decision to halt admissions came after the State Common Entrance Test (CET) Cell declared the seat allotments for Round 2 of the Common Admission Process (CAP) for undergraduate medical admissions.

Due to the halt in the MBBS/BDS admissions, the students were facing uncertainty regarding their future, after being turned away by the private medical/dental institutes. Since the students had a deadline to confirm their admissions by October 6, the decision of AMUPMDC created widespread unrest among the aspirants.

Also Read: Maha Private Medical Colleges Stop MBBS Admissions over Pending Fee Reimbursement, State CET Cell Threatens Legal Action

Earlier, the State CET Cell had threatened to take legal action against the private medical and dental colleges for refusing to admit students. Issuing a notice, the CET Cel informed about its intention to recommend disciplinary measures against the colleges to the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences (MUHS), to which all the medical institutes in the State are affiliated.

As per the latest media report by Indian Express, finally, granting relief to the medical and dental aspirants, AMUPMDC decided to resume admissions on Saturday i.e. October 5.

Writing to State's Secretary of Medical Education, the association confirmed its decision to resume admissions and stated, "All private medical/dental colleges affiliated with the association will participate in the ongoing Round 2 admissions, while we continue to pursue the government for the resolution of outstanding concerns."

In the letter, AMUPMDC referred to an October 4 communication from the State Government's Medical Education Department, which provided written assurances.

The State Government's letter indicated that a meeting was held with various concerned departments on October 3 to expedite the disbursement of pending dues. During the meeting, the State had instructed the Social Justice and Special Assistance, Tribal Development and other departments to review the total dues owed to the students admitted under government schemes in private colleges and initiate the clearance process. Further, it was also noted that the 60-75 percent of the amount comes from the Central Government.

Apart from this, the letter also referred to Supreme Court guidelines, urging the association to avoid further delays in the admission process highlighting that the delay could be considered contempt of the Court's directions.

However, students only got one remaining day to confirm their seats after the association decided to resume admissions on Saturday. Addressing the problems faced by the students, an official from the CET Cell had earlier told The Indian Express, "Admissions will continue through Sunday, and private colleges have assured that the process will be completed as per the scheduled deadline."

Also Read: Fee reimbursement process for open category MBBS students is under process: State to Bombay HC