Finance
By: Shree1news, 24 MAR 2021
BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha Assembly on Tuesday unanimously passed a resolution for reservation of 15 per cent seats for students of government schools in medical and engineering colleges of the State.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik brought the resolution within the House which was supported by all political parties.
Following the Cabinet approval, the State government had formed a high power committee headed by Justice AK Mishra to make recommendations in this regard from the 2021-22 academic session.
The committee found that about 86 per cent of the students in Odisha are in government schools, however they get only 23 per cent seats in State medical colleges and 21 per cent in State engineering colleges.
The committee further found that 12 per cent of the students studying in private schools get nearly 60 per cent seats in both medical and engineering colleges.
Moving the resolution, the Chief Minister stated that there’s inequity among the students arising out of the physical and economic access to coaching institutions which play a major role in national entrance examinations.
The Chief Minister stated that the reservation for government school students will operate horizontally covering all vertical reservations as well as general unreserved groups.
The government will soon issue a notification under section 9 of the Odisha Professional Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission and Fixation of Fee) Act, 2007 to implement the decision, he added.
Requesting members to unanimously accept the recommendations of the high power committee within the interest of lakhs of children of the State, the Chief Minister stated reservation will give an enormous enhance to talented and intelligent students who can’t have physical and economic access to coaching institutions.
The Chief Minister stated after the introduction of common entrance examinations like NEET and JEE, the number of students from government schools and colleges of the State in these courses is getting reduced considerably.
Stating that this is not due to lack of merit, he stated rather the students are unable to fare better in these tests because of lack of proper coaching facilities.
Source:A-N
