New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday informed the Supreme Court that it would consider provision of quotas for States under the 15 per cent all India seats in medicine from the next academic year.

Additional Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam made this submission before a three-Judge Bench comprising Chief Justice Y.K. Sabharwal, Justice C.K. Thakker and Justice P.K. Balasubramanyan hearing petitions relating to streamlining of medical admissions in the country and to review the steps taken pursuant to directions issued in January 2005.

Mr. Subramaniam said that the Centre had held discussions with the States on the question of increasing the all India seats from 15 to 20 per cent but most of the States were not in favour of increasing it. In view of this it was not possible to increase the percentage from 15 to 20. On quotas for States, he said the Centre was working out a solution possibly before the next academic year. The Bench recorded this submission.

Not a success

On conducting counselling through the process of video-conferencing, the Centre submitted that this was experimented last year in Jaipur and Delhi and it was not a success. As a result this was not attempted this year. The Bench directed the Centre to look into the matter again and experiment it next year in a far off place in the South.

On the constitution of a high power committee/ombudsman to sort out various issues including grant of affiliation to new medical colleges, delays in inspection and increase of intake in existing colleges, the Centre said meetings had taken place between the government and the Medical Council of India and most of the problems had been solved.

Procedure for grant of affiliation had been streamlined and there might not be any complaints from colleges in this regard and remaining issues would be sorted out in the next meeting, the Centre said.

The Bench made it clear to the Centre that in the name of streamlining procedure, the court would not permit dilution of standards or lack of infrastructure in medical colleges. Mr. Subramaniam assured the court that the government would ensure that international standards were maintained in the existing colleges as well as those to be started in future. Recording this submission, the Bench asked the Director General of Health Services to file an affidavit in the next date of hearing in September listing out the developments.

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