Effect of Online Counselling at Deemed Universities: Several Institutes Scrap NRI Quota, Convert them to Open Category
New Delhi: The Supreme Court order asking the Medical Counselling Committee to conduct online counselling for all the admission rounds for all the seats in the deemed universities has affected the number of NRI quota seats in such institutes.
Around half a dozen institutes have scrapped the NRI quota and moved them to the open category. Some of the institutes have reduced the seats belonging to the NRI category, adds TOI.
Until last year, MCC used to conduct three rounds of admission for the deemed universities and after that the vacant seats used to be handed back to the institutes. Those vacant seats used to be filled by the institutes at their level in the stray vacancy round (the final round).
Medical Dialogues had earlier reported that while considering the plea by Dar-Us-Slam Educational Trust, the Supreme Court had ordered back in the year 2017 that DGHS would be conducting the counseling of deemed university, including those run by religious and linguistic minorities.
Last year, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) sought clarity from the Supreme Court regarding the order issued on 09.05.2017 and also sought direction from the court to be allowed to conduct online counselling for stray vacancy round for 100% Deemed Universities in NEET Under Graduate and Post Graduate course.
While considering the matter, the top court had directed that for 100% deemed universities, (i) There shall be four rounds of common counselling for the All India Quota seats conducted by the Medical Counseling Committee; and (ii) The Medical Counseling Committee is permitted to conduct an online counselling for the stray vacancy round.
Although the Apex Court had directed the MCC for conducting online counselling for the stray vacancy round in 100% UG and PG seats in deemed universities, NMC PG Board has issued direction to the State authorities to implement the process in private medical colleges as well.
Recently, with an aim to put an end to the issue of seat blocking in medical colleges, the Postgraduate Medical Education Board (PGMEB) of the NMC clarified that the counselling agencies in the State and the Centre will fill up seats in all medical institutes through online counselling.
Clarifying that the mode of counselling will be online even for the stray vacany round in Private Medical Colleges from this academic year, NMC PG Board has further mentioned that no college/institute should conduct the counselling, including the stray vacancy round, in physical mode.
As per the latest media report by the Times of India, since the Supreme Court order and the NMC circulation, deemed universities like SRM Medical College, Chettinad Hospital and Research Institute, Sri Lakshmi Narayana Institute of Medical Sciences, Bhaarath Medical College and Hospital have scrapped the NRI quota seats and several institutes have reduced those seats in the final seat matrix.
Commenting on this, an official from the health ministry told the Daily that with 100% seats getting filled through centralised counselling, there is no incentive for any medical college to block seats.
“Colleges are also worried there may not be too many takers in the NRI category and hence have converted all seats to open quota,” added the official.
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