The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : 700 dental students may face the axe

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Aug 21, 2005

Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

700 dental students may face the axe

B.S. Ramesh

MCI guidelines say candidates must secure 50 per cent marks in tests

BANGALORE: A total of 700 students admitted to various dental colleges this year will face the axe if the Karnataka High Court ruling on Medical Council of India (MCI) guidelines that candidates should secure 50 per cent of marks in the qualifying examination and entrance test are applied to them also.

Highly placed sources told The Hindu that the Dental Council of India (DCI) had similar norms as that of the MCI regarding admission of students and their eligibility to take up the Bachelor of Dental Science (BDS) course.

The MCI has been insisting that colleges admit students only if they secure 50 per cent of marks in the qualifying examination and also the entrance test. This was upheld on August 17 by a single judge of the High Court who ordered that the admission of 237 students who did not fulfil this guideline be set aside.

There are 38 dental colleges in the State with 2,400 seats. Of the institutions, one is a government college, 26 private unaided and 11 come under the minority category. While the government college has 60 seats, private unaided colleges have 1,560 seats and the minority colleges have 780 seats. The admission of 700 of the 1,200 government quota students could be imperilled if the DCI insists on the guidelines.

The MCI rules (Regulations on Graduate Medical education) were framed and gazetted in 1997. It was subsequently amended in 1999 wherein it was clearly said that in States where there were more than one medical college and more than one qualifying examination, the candidates would have to secure 50 per cent in both the qualifying and entrance examinations.

Interestingly, the DCI rules on admission predate the MCI rules. The DCI framed rules which were approved by the Centre under the Dentists' Act of 1948. The rules were modified on June 23, 1983. The sources said all admissions from the next academic year would be done in accordance with the MCI and DCI guidelines. They said the norms had not been followed as the MCI till this year had not insisted that the rules be followed. Meanwhile, the DCI has issued a direction to dental colleges to asking them to furnish the list of students for the BDS and MDS courses.

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