In a significant development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed that the issue of reservation for Other Backward Classes (OBC) in the all-India quota (AIQ) in medical seats in State government-run medical colleges be resolved “on top priority” soon and out of court by various Ministries involved.
This was conveyed to Ministers for Education and Health Dharmendra Pradhan and Mansukh Mandaviya and secretaries of their Ministries as well as senior officers of the Ministries of Law and Social Justice at a meeting presided over by Mr. Modi on Monday evening.
“Under current conditions, 15% of under graduate and 50% of post graduate seats in State government medical colleges are earmarked as all-India quota. For admission, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes have reservations in this quota, but there is no reservation for OBCs. Prime Minister Modi wants that this long-standing demand by OBC students be resolved soon, even as several cases are pending before different courts across the country for many years now,” said a government official privy to the meeting.
At the same meeting, Mr. Modi also directed the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to implement reservations for the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in the field of medical education. He also asked the Ministry to review the status of implementation of EWS quotas in various institutions of medical education.
The meeting and the urgency with regard to resolving the OBC quota issue comes even as the Centre told the Madras High Court on Monday that the government would resolve the matter in a week’s time. The court was hearing a contempt of court petition moved by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in which the party pointed out that there was a delay in carrying out the court’s earlier order that the quota be implemented in the academic year 2021-22.
