‘EWS quota could shrink PG general pvt med seats to 5%'

Time of India

24-07-2025

Mumbai: If the state moves ahead with its plan to introduce the 10% economically weaker section (EWS) quota in postgraduate medical admissions in private colleges —without expanding the total number of seats—it could leave the general category with barely 5% of the pie left to claim.
For undergraduate students, 40% seats would be left.
The concern began brew-ing among all medical aspirants. A day after the state's admission brochure for undergraduate medicine included the announcement about EWS reservations in private colleges, the calculations began—and the implications were not lost on aspiring postgraduates too.
"With the inclusion of EWS and Maratha quotas, open category students are left with a mere 5% in private PG medical seats," said parent representative Brijesh Sutaria.
"Constitutional categories already account for 45%, while 50% go to institutional and NRI quotas. It's a shrinking corridor for general merit students."
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In 2019, when the EWS quota was introduced nationwide, the central govt expanded seats by 25% in govt colleges to cushion the blow for all quotas. Sutaria said he believes Maharashtra must do the same for the private colleges now. "The govt needs to approach the National Medical Commission and seek a proportional increase in PG seats," he said, calling it the only way to "restore fairness and access."
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However, sources said the same was done for undergraduate seats too before including the mention of the EWS quota in the admission brochure released on Wednesday. "However, the NMC wrote to the state that there were no plans to increase the seats." It is not clear whether the state will once again approach the NMC for PG seats.
At the heart of the uproar is the absence of a seat hike. Without increasing the intake, say students, introducing the EWS quota amounts to slicing up an already cramped pie.
In letters to the state govt and the National Medical Commission, students said the move goes against of the Supreme Court's directive that the EWS reservation must ride on a 25% expansion in capacity, not at the cost of existing quotas.
Maharashtra is the only state in the country that has chosen to implement the 10% EWS quota in private medical colleges. At present, 22 private medical colleges in Maharashtra offer 3,120 MBBS seats. The new reservation, however, bypasses minority-run institutions, where the quota won't apply. For postgraduate aspirants, the competition narrows even further. The total number of PG medical seats available across private institutes in the state is about 900.
" Students are seeking appointments with senior officials in the govt and in Delhi to present their case," said parent representative Sudha Shenoy.