Punjab: Medical Counselling Committee gets cracking on ‘misuse’ of NRI quota seats for admission to MBBS courses

Tribune News Service

Advertisement

Faridkot, August 8

To ensure that there is no ‘misuse’ of NRI quota seats for admission to MBBS courses, the Medical Counselling Committee (MCC) has asked candidates who want to change their nationality from ‘Indian’ to ‘NRI’ to submit proof of their NRI sponsors.

The MCC took this decision after it received several complaints that some private medical institutions fill NRI quota seats with local candidates, passing them off as ‘sponsored by NRIs’.

All medical colleges in Punjab offer about 185 NRI quota seats and about 80 per cent of these seats remain vacant every year in the absence of eligible candidates. The fee for an MBBS seat is $1,10,000 at government and private medical colleges, and 15 per cent of the total seats are earmarked for NRI candidates.

Vacant NRI quota seats are a huge financial loss to the government and private institutions as the seats are converted into general category. While private colleges fill these seats under management quota (charging Rs 55.25 lakh fee for full course), government colleges charge Rs 9.05 lakh against $1 lakh (about Rs 93 lakh) fee for an NRI seat.

The MCC has now asked all candidates wanting to change their nationality to submit proof of passport and visa of the sponsor. The candidate has to submit details of the relationship of the NRI with the candidate, an affidavit from the sponsor that he will sponsor the entire course fee of the candidate, and an Embassy certificate of the sponsor.

Sources at Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) said some medical institutions granted admission to a certain number of students under the NRI quota by charging higher fee. In these cases, neither the students nor their parents were NRIs. In fact, under the category, several ‘less meritorious’ students, who brought in more money, got admission.

As per rules, the person who sponsors the student should be a first degree relation of the student and ordinarily residing abroad as an NRI. If the student has no parents or near relatives or taken as a ward by some other nearest relative, he/she may be considered for admission, provided the guardian has bona fide treated the student as a ward and such guardian shall file an affidavit indicating the interest shown in the affairs of the student and also his relationship with the student, and such person also should be an NRI, and ordinarily residing abroad.

Passing off local candidates as sponsored

• The committee took the decision after it received complaints that some private medical institutions fill NRI quota seats with local candidates
• All medical colleges in Punjab offer about 185 NRI quota seats and about 80% of these seats remain vacant every year
• Fee for an MBBS seat is $1,10,000 at government and private medical colleges, and 15% of the total seats are earmarked for NRI candidates