Admn to reconsider continuation of fee reimbursement

Puducherry, Sep 27 (UNI) The terriorial administration would reconsider the continuation of 100 per cent fees reimbursement to students selected for MBBS course in private medical colleges through the Centralised Admission Committee here (CENTAC), Health Minister E Valsaraj said today.

Addressing a press conference here, he said the administration was forced to reconsider this as the quality of education was going down and to avoid the increasing financial burden to the government.

There were seven private mdical colleges in Puducherry, of which two were Deemed universities, he said the administration had obtained 311 seats out of the total 900 seats.

The government would have to spent Rs 1.75 lakh per annum for each of the 311 students, which worked out to spending Rs 3 to 3.25 crore a year for medical students alone, he added.

He said students, who secured 103 marks out of 200 in open general category in the JEE and those with 104 marks in the BC category and 101 in the MBC had secured seats in medical colleges through CENTAC, which clearly showed that the quality of education had fallen.

The students, who were availing the benefit would continue to get it, he said adding the administration would modify the scheme from next academic year by including income criteria in it.

Stating that the Cath Laboratory would be inaugurated at the Government Hospital soon, Mr Valsaraj said he was planning to meet Union Health and Family Welfare Minister Anbumani Ramdoss in connection with Puducherry quota in the enhanced 25 MBBS seats at JIPMER here.

UNI