The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW) announced 27% Reservation for OBCs (Other Backward Classes) & 10% Reservation for EWS (Economically Weaker Section) in the All-India Quota Scheme (AIQ). It will be applicable for all
Medical & Dental courses (both Undergraduate & Postgraduate) from the academic year 2021-22.
- Around 5,500 students will benefit because of the reservation.
All-India Quota (AIQ) Scheme
Introduced in 1986 as per the Supreme Court’s direction, the main objective of the scheme was to allow merit-based opportunities to students. It allows students from any state to study in a medical college in another state.
- It consists of 15% of total available UG seats & 50% of total available PG seats in Government medical colleges.
- Until 2007, there was no reservation in the AIQ scheme. The Supreme Court in 2007 introduced reservations of 15% for Scheduled Castes & 7.5% for Scheduled Tribes in the AIQ scheme.
Earlier Reservations for OBCs & EWS
i.The Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act was implemented in 2007 to provide a uniform 27% reservation to OBCs.
- It was implemented in all central educational institutions, but was not extended to AIQ seats of state medical and dental colleges.
ii.The Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019 was passed to introduce 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) of society for admission to Central Government-run educational institutions and private education institutions and for employment in Central Government jobs.
State of Medical Education
The Government stated that between 2014-2020, the number of MBBS seats in India have increased by 56% to 84,649, the number of PG seats have increased by 80% to 54,275 seats.
- During the period, 179 new medical colleges were established. The total number of medical colleges stands at 558 (out of which 269 are run by private operators).
About Ministry of Health & Family Welfare (MoHFW)
Union Minister – Mansukh L. Mandaviya (Rajya Sabha – Gujarat)
MoS – Dr. Bharati Pravin Pawar (Dindori, Maharashtra)
