Parents of medical aspirants in Maharashtra challenge Maratha quota

Parents say 16% reservation leaves open category students with only 275 of 3,050 seats in govt colleges

Parents of students aspiring to join undergraduate and post-graduate medical and dental courses in Maharashtra challenged the recently approved 16% quota for Marathas in the Bombay high court (HC) on Monday, stating it leaves less than 20% seats for open category students in sought-after government colleges.

This is the second petition against the reservation granted to Marathas in government jobs and educational institutes on November 29.The HC combined the parents’ plea with another public interest litigation that came up for hearing last week. (HT)

This is the second petition against the reservation granted to Marathas in government jobs and educational institutes on November 29.The HC combined the parents’ plea with another public interest litigation that came up for hearing last week.

“We have highlighted the plight of medical aspirants in the state, who are already facing fierce competition during admission. Introduction of Maratha quota means deserving students with good scores will lose their seat to someone from reserved quotas. Hopefully, the court will see our point,” said a parent.

“A previous order by the Supreme Court states the reservation can’t go beyond 50%. With the addition of Maratha quota, there’s barely any seat left for students in the open category,” said another parent.

Currently, 50% of undergraduate medical seats in government-run institutes are kept aside for students from the reserved categories (SC/ST/OBC/VJNT). From the remaining 50% meant for the open category, 14% seats go to persons with disability (PwD), defence and other quotas. There’s also a special quota (depending on eligible candidates) for students from the reserved categories who are eligible for an open quota seat based on their scores, which can range from 3%-5%.

This means, from the total 3,050 seats currently available in state government-run MBBS institutes, students from the open category are eligible for less than 275 seats. More than two lakh students from Maharashtra apply for medical seats every year. “The entrance exam for post-graduate medical and dental admissions will take place in January. We hope to get interim relief,” said a PG aspirant.