No More extra weightage to Sports, NCC in Maharashtra CET

Mumbai: The extra weight age/marks given to medical entrants participating in sports/NCC or belonging to freedom fighter’s quota, while granting merit ranks for Medical Common Entrance Test (CET) is likely to be scrapped. This comes in the wake of a petition filed by parents challenging the validity of the extra weight age given to some last month. The Bombay High Court has sought the state’s advice on the possibility of doing the same. Thus making it a purely merit ranking admission, as expected by the petitioners.

Though the scrapping was to be implemented next year onwards, the state has decided to go ahead with it from this year, as the parents moving the petition are those of candidates appearing for this academic year. If processed, the admission process would be further delayed as , the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER) will have to revise the merit rank list for admissions feel some.

According to a senior official, the advocate-general has strongly recommended scrapping of the additional weight age given to students with immediate effect. "He even mentioned that the marks given are illegal, arbitrary and have no statutory standing," the official added.

He felt that giving additional weight age for anything will dilute merit. According to him, students were making multiple claims under more than two categories. Elaborating further, he pointed cases where students had gone to the extent of making multiple claims. He was of the opinion that in the face of the rush for admissions to medical colleges, the only thing fair would be to allot seats on

merit basis.

The number of candidates seeking additional weight age under four categories has been seen to have increased to 919 this year, 2.5 times more than last year.It has also observed that the number of bogus applications seeking additional weight age through CET are also on the rise; primarily due to the fear of the national-level entrance exam (NEET).The trend was also observed in 2013, when NEET was first introduced.

Being a state matter the court despite being in favour of abolishing extra weight age/marks, has decided to ask the state to review the matter. “The department will take the decision soon," said Pravin Shingare, Director, Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER).

Another hindrance that may in all likelihood occur in the face of doing away with weight age, according to a parent would be, aspirants whose ranks go down, moving court and causing further delay.