The Pondicherry Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) on Saturday denied that there was “a consensual agreement with the Government of Puducherry to allocate any proportion of the extra MBBS seats to the CENTAC”.
In its first response after the Government withdrew the Essentiality Certificate on the basis of which the institution was sanctioned an increased intake of MBBS seats, PIMS cited a Supreme Court judgement that held that the State had absolutely no power to impose any apportionment of seats upon private unaided professional institutions.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court had held that any such fixation of quota could only be by possible consensual agreement entered into between the State and such private educational institutions, it pointed out.
PIMS, a unit of Madras Medical Mission, was a private un-aided Christian minority institute, and had in the last 5 years, been allotting about 35 seats of the 100 seats to students from Pondicherry, admitted through the CENTAC as per consensual agreement with the Government of Puducherry.
However, in the case of the enhanced seats (50) there was no consensual agreement with the Government of Puducherry to allocate any proportion of these extra MBBS seats to the CENTAC, PIMS claimed.
PIMS was granted permission by the Ministry of Health & FW, New Delhi and Medical Council of India to increase the intake of MBBS students from 100 to 150 for the first time in 2014-15. For the academic year 2015, PIMS was able to obtain the necessary approval of the Ministry of Health & FW, Govt of India to enhance its intake from 100 to 150 only after filing a petition in the Supreme Court.
The final written permission from Ministry of Health & FW, Government of India, was received only a few days prior to the last date of admissions permissible as per the guidelines issued by the Medical Council of India and the Supreme Court, which was September 30.
The statement claimed that the PIMS Management had very little time left and was not sure whether the Government of Puducherry through CENTAC would be able to fill up these seats and therefore decided to fill the seats under the management quota.
Though the Government had convened two meetings with the management of PIMS during September to discuss regarding the allotment of seats to the CENTAC, it had duly informed the Government in writing about the circumstances in which it could not participate.
“As the letter of permission was obtained only a few days before the last date of admission as per the guidelines issued by the Medical Council of India and the Supreme Court, which is September 30, 2015, and a consensual agreement could not be made with the Government regarding the extra 50 seats, hence these have been filled up by eligible candidates under the management quota,” PIMS stated.
The government recently withdrew the Essentiality Certificate on the basis of which the institution was sanctioned an increased intake of MBBS seats
