OBC-EWS students will get reservations in medical education: Centre

Ground Report | New Delhi: OBC-EWS students; The country's new Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya has made a big announcement regarding the education sector. Mandaviya has told that now OBC and weak income groups ie EWS students will be given reservations in medical studies. Announcing this, the Union Minister said that the government is committed to providing reservations to the backward and weaker sections of the country.

Recently, Mansukh Mandaviya, who took over the post of Health Minister, announced this on Twitter. He wrote in his tweet,"Historic decision has been taken by the government in the field of medical education in the country.

Under the All India quota, 27% for OBC students and 10% for weaker income group (EWS) students in undergraduate/postgraduate, medical, and dental education under All India Quota Reservation will be given.

With this decision, 5,550 students coming from OBC and Economically Weaker Section (EWS) will be benefited from admission in medical and dental education. Government is committed to giving reservations to them for the upliftment of backward and weaker income groups in the country."

Reservation will be applicable from this year 

A detailed press release has also been issued regarding this reservation. In which it has been told that this rule will be applicable from this year i.e. academic year 2021-22. As the minister has said, it has also been told in the same that the government is committed to advance the poor and backward classes. That is why it was decided to give this reservation. It has also been told in this that how many MBBS seats have been increased after the Modi government came.

The All India Quota (AIQ) Scheme was introduced in 1986 under the directions of the Hon’ble Supreme Court to provide for domicile-free merit-based opportunities to students from any State to aspire to study in a good medical college located in another State. All India Quota consists of 15% of total available UG seats and 50% of total available PG seats in government medical colleges. Initially, there was no reservation in AIQ Scheme up to 2007.

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In 2007, the Hon’ble Supreme Court introduced reservations of 15% for SCs and 7.5% for STs in the AIQ Scheme. When the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act became effective in 2007 providing for uniform 27% reservation to OBCs, the same was implemented in all the Central Educational Institutions viz. Safdarjung Hospital, Lady Harding Medical College, Aligarh Muslim University and Banaras Hindu University, etc. However, this was not extended to the AIQ seats of State medical and dental colleges.

The present Government is committed to providing due reservation both to the backward category as well as the EWS category. The Union Government has now taken a historic decision to provide for 27% reservation for OBCs and 10% reservation for EWS in the AIQ Scheme.

OBC-EWS students will get reservations

The OBC students from across the country shall now be able to take benefit of this reservation in AIQ Scheme to compete for seats in any State. Being a Central Scheme, the Central List of OBCs shall be used for this reservation. Around 1500 OBC students in MBBS and 2500 in postgraduation will be benefitted through this reservation.

In order to provide benefit to students belonging to the EWS category in admission to higher educational Institutions, a Constitutional amendment was made in 2019 which enabled the provision of 10% reservation for the EWS category. Accordingly, seats in medical/dental colleges were increased over two years in 2019-20 and 2020-21 to accommodate this additional 10% EWS reservation so that the total number of seats available for the unreserved category do not reduce. In the AIQ seats, however, this benefit had not been extended so far.

Therefore, along with the 27% reservation for OBCs, 10% reservation for EWS is also being extended in AIQ seats for all the undergraduate/postgraduate medical/dental courses from the current academic year 2021-22. This will benefit every year around more than 550 EWS students for MBBS and around 1000 EWS students for PG medical courses. (OBC-EWS students)

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This decision is also in sync with the significant reforms carried out in the field of medical education since 2014. During the last six years, MBBS Seats in the country have increased by 56% from 54,348 seats in 2014 to 84,649 seats in 2020 and the number of PG seats have increased by 80% from 30,191seats in 2014 to 54,275 seats in 2020. During the same period, 179 new medical colleges have been established and now the country has 558 (Govt: 289, Pvt: 269) medical colleges.

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