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Bengaluru: More than 400 undergraduate medical seats under the management quota at private medical colleges remain vacant in Karnataka with less than two weeks left for admissions for the current academic year.
High fees, ranging between Rs 26 lakh and Rs 45 lakh, is believed to be the major reason why students are rejecting seats under the management quota.
The lowest fee is Rs 26,12,700 at Navodaya Medical College, Raichur and Srinivas Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Mangaluru, while the highest fee is 45,41,500 at Sapthagiri Institute of Medical Sciences, Bengaluru.
The Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) has announced the schedule for the mop-up round seat allotment for medical courses with 596 medical seats still unfilled after the second round of seat allotment, of which 453 seats are under the management quota and 135 under private quota.
Only seven seats are left under the affordable government quota in private colleges.
However, college managements are confident that seats will be filled up in the mop-up round.
“Even last year, around 20 seats were vacant in our college after the second round, but in the mop-up, all the seats were filled. This year too, we are confident of getting admissions for all the available seats,” said a management representative of a private medical college in Bengaluru.
KEA officials say college managements have been clearly told not to increase or decrease the fees declared under management quota after the first round.
“Last year, after a few colleges offered seats for a lower fee in the second round in order to fill vacant seats, students who had got seats in the first round by paying the full fees, started approaching the KEA seeking a discount. Considering this, we informed the colleges they cannot change the fee structure mentioned on the KEA website,” said H Prasanna, Executive Director, KEA.
However, to participate in the mop-up round, students must pay the medical course fees as deposit and if the students get the seat in the mop-up round, the fee deposit will be adjusted accordingly. If a student gets a seat, but cancels it, then the will be forfeited. “Not only will they forfeit the fee deposit, such candidates will also be penalised according to KEA regulations and will not be allowed for any counseling, including All India counseling for the next academic year,” warned H Prasanna. KEA has allowed students to pay the medical fee deposit by downloading the challan from October 5 to 8 while option entry window to select seats will be open between October 7 and 14.