Maharashtra revokes decision on EWS quota in pvt medical colleges

The order issued by the state’s medical education department on Wednesday, with regards to EWS reservation clause in the information brochure of the state medical admission, stated, “For MBBS/BDS/BAMS/BHMS and BUMS courses, this reservation will be applicable only if Central Government / respective council increased existing seats. For courses other than MBBS/BDS/BAMS/BHMS and BUMS courses, 10% EWS reservation will be applicable on available seats.”

Principal secretary of medical education department, Dheeraj Kumar, said, “After careful examination and various court orders, including those of Supreme Court and High Court, we have modified provisions as per last year.”

This comes as a big relief to medical aspirants in the state and their parents who along with private medical colleges were up in arms against the implementation of 10 per cent EWS quota in private medical colleges, which came to light with release of the information brochure on July 23. According to them this was going to result in a drastic reduction in the number of seats which are under general merit, causing steep increase in cut-off marks for admission on those seats.

It was highlighted by parents as well as colleges that it was unfair of state to implement 10 per cent EWS quota in private medical colleges without allowing proportionate boost in the total intake, a one time-measure followed by the central government when EWS reservation was applied in government medical colleges (GMCs).

While the Association of Private Medical Colleges wrote to state against the reservation, several candidates and parents not only sent multiple letters requesting to withdraw the decision but also met with the state’s medical education minister Hasan Mushrif on Tuesday, with their concerns.

Welcoming the move, a parent representative, Sudha Shenoy said, “The minister as well as principal secretary of the department not only gave us a patient hearing, the issue was resolved promptly within just a day after we presented our concerns.”

Another parent representative, Brijesh Sutaria, said, “It is now clear that the Government of Maharashtra will not implement EWS reservation in private medical colleges unless seat capacity is increased, a move that aligns with the Central Government’s original 2019 approach. This step protects merit-based access while preserving the intent of social justice.”