In a first for COMEDK, all dental seats taken in round one

For the first time in 10 years, all dental seats under the general merit category were taken in the first round of counselling for admissions to member colleges of the Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMEDK). The counselling venue saw a mad rush for dental seats on Saturday, which, COMEDK officials said, was never seen in the consortium’s decade-long history.

While all the general merit medical seats were taken on the first day of the first round of counselling, only 27 dental seats under the general merit category were taken on Thursday and 580 remained untaken. However, on Saturday, which was the final day of the first round of counselling for medical and dental seats, all 430 seats that remained after the second day of counselling were taken by 6 p.m.

As was the trend with general merit medical seats, at least 65 per cent of dental seats under the general merit category were taken by students from Kerala.

At the end of the first round of counselling, medical seats under all categories were taken, while 17 dental seats in each of the Tulu Minority and Telugu Minority categories and 107 under the Hyderabad Karnataka quota remained.

CET

Meanwhile, students and parents continued to throng the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) head office here demanding more flexibility in option entryduring the second round of counselling. KEA officials met with parents and members of a student organisation who complained that they were ill-informed about the option entry procedure and should be given another chance.

KEA executive director Rame Gowda, however, said option entry ended on Saturday evening as scheduled and allotments would be made on Sunday.

“The students said they wanted to enter lower options (colleges that ranked lower than the seats allotted to them), which is not possible. We told them that the second extended round of option entry will be open to all and they can participate in it,” he added.