Medical aspirants want ‘additional batch’ for those without a seat

Admissions to medical and dental institutes across the country concluded on October 7

Parents of medical aspirants from the state on Monday wrote to the Directorate of Medical Education & Research (DMER), demanding an additional batch this academic year for those left without a seat owing to the changes to the admission procedure.

The parents, in the letter, cited the 1977-78 medical admission season, where special provisions were made to increase the number of medical seats to accommodate more students.(Rep pic/HT file)

Admissions to medical and dental institutes across the country concluded on October 7. “The changes to the admission procedure were not introduced systematically, leading to chaos. Colleges got only six weeks to complete the admission procedure. Many colleges have vacant seats, even as many eligible students are still waiting for a seat,” said a parent of an MBBS aspirant.

The parents, in the letter, cited the 1977-78 medical admission season, where special provisions were made to increase the number of medical seats to accommodate more students. “If something similar is implemented this year, hundreds of students won’t have to take the entrance tests again next year,” said the parent.

In 1977, the first batch of HSC students was given admission to MBBS and BDS courses. According to the previous policy, 1977 was also the last year when FYBSc students were given admissions to medical courses. With the number of eligible students almost double the number of seats, the state had created an additional batch to accommodate the students.

Officials at the directorate said not much can be done. “In the absence of a Supreme Court directive, our hands are tied. We have more than 70 seats vacant in Maharashtra, but nothing can be done as the SC has refused to extend the deadline,” said Dr Pravin Shingare, director, DMER. “Only the SC or the state can pass a resolution in the matter.”

What happened in 1977-78?

*Until 1976, there were no HSC exams and admissions to medical colleges were conducted on the basis of FYBSc results

In 1977, the first batch of HSC passed the examinations. This was the last year when FYBSc students could be admitted to the courses

While the number of seats available was 700, the number of students eligible was double

So the state passed a resolution to allow institutes to double the number of seats available in their courses, bringing the number of seats to 1,400. This was termed the “additional batch”, and was applicable only for 1977-78