In-service doctors to be provided marks incentive as per MCI : HC to Rajasthan govt

The High Court in its attempt to provide relief to in service candidates on Friday has issued an order to the government to grant marks weight age to in service candidates, as incentive for determining their merit in the NEET Examination,2017 in accordance with the terms of provisions accorded in the Post Graduate Medical Education Regulation 2000 regulation 9.

With the judgement, the court was seen quashing the Section 3 and 4 of the notification released by the state government on 24/03/2017, that called for reservation 50 % reservation in the state quota for students passing out of colleges affiliated to Rajasthan University/Rajasthan University of Health Sciences as well as provided blanket 10% bonus marks to in-service candidates. In particular the two quashed points of the order read as under

• 50% of total seats (degree/diploma), which come under, State Quota (i.e. 25% of total seats) will be only for the students who have received degree from Colleges affiliated to Rajasthan University of Health Sciences/Rajasthan University.


• For the purpose of equating the in-service candidates for the grant of benefits, as per the previous policies of the State the candidates who have worked for 2 or more years of regular service in Hilly/Desert/Tribal areas (difficult areas) and 3 or more years in other rural areas (remote areas), maximum of 10% of the marks obtained in the NEET as bonus marks as per the service actually rendered by the in-service candidate in the remote and/or difficult (rural) areas will be granted as an incentive.

The writ challenged that the former leads to formation of two merit lists, against MCI guidelines and the latter also being violation of regulation 9 of the Post Graduate Medical Education Regulations which state

Provided that in determining the merit of candidates who are in service of Government/public authority, weightage in the marks may be given by the Government/competent authority as an incentive at the rate of 10% of the marks obtained for each year of service in remote and/or difficult areas up to the maximum of 30% of the marks obtained in National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test, the remote and difficult areas shall be as defined by the State Government/competent authority from time to time.

It was observed that when the regulations call for 10% incentive marks for every year of rural service to the maximum of 30%, then how can the state government implement blanket 10% marks incentive, disregarding the service.

The senior counsel for the state government stated u/Reg.9(IV) of the Regulations, 2000, 10% of the marks is the minimum to be awarded to the in-service Doctors for each year of their working in remote and/or difficult areas which may extend upto 30% of the marks obtained in NEET Examination but the State Government in its discretion and in the given facts & circumstances has considered to grant benefit only upto 10% of the marks obtained in NEET Examination to the in-service Doctors/Medical Officersirrespective of the service rendered in remote/difficult areas in the State and at least it cannot be said to be supplanting the scheme of Regulations, 2000 by the State Government while admitting the students in Post Graduate Medical Degree Courses

The court however, quashing both the sections reiterated an earlier supreme court judgement

Reg.9 of the Regulations, 2000 is a self-contained Code and admission to the Medical Courses has to be made strictly in accordance with the procedure prescribed therein. At the same time, the State Government has no authority to enact any law or issue any executive instructions which in any manner either supplant or overreach the procedure for admission to Post Graduate Medical Courses laid down by the Central Government in exercise of its powers conferred under the Indian Medical Council Act, 1956

Regarding the quota being fixed the court observed

the quota which has been fixed for in-service candidates and non-service (Medical Graduates) in para-3 of the Order dt.20.03.2017 is not permissible under scheme of Reg.9 of the Regulations, 2000 and at the same time, proviso to Clause (IV) of Reg.9 predicates that in determining the merit of candidates who are in service of the Government or a public authority, they will be eligible for weightage in the marks to be given by the Government/competent authority as an incentive at the rate of 10% of the marks obtained for each year of service in specified remote/difficult ares of the State upto maximum of 30% of the marks obtained in NEET and indisputably, this provision does not provide any reservation for in-service candidates but only of giving weightage in the form of incentive marks as specified to the class of in-service candidates, obviously who have served in the quota which has been fixed for in-service candidates and non-service (Medical Graduates) in para-3 of the Order dt.20.03.2017 is not permissible under scheme of Reg.9 of the Regulations, 2000 and at the same time, proviso to Clause (IV) of Reg.9 predicates that in determining the merit of candidates who are in service of the Government or a public authority, they will be eligible for weightage in the marks to be given by the Government/competent authority as an incentive at the rate of 10% of the marks obtained for each year of service in specified remote/difficult ares of the State upto maximum of 30% of the marks obtained in NEET and indisputably, this provision does not provide any reservation for in-service candidates but only of giving weightage in the form of incentive marks as specified to the class of in-service candidates, obviously who have served in

the submission of institutional preference deserves outright rejection more so when Reg.9 does not provide any reservation either to in-service or non-service Doctors and it only envisages one merit list of the candidates who have participated in the NEET Examination by adding weightage of marks assigned to in-service candidates for determining their merit in NEET Examination and all are on equal footing and obviously the mandate of Reg.9 is to assign specified marks which may commensurate with the length of service rendered by the candidate in notified remote and/or difficult areas in the State which is linked to the marks obtained in NEET Examination

Finally the court was seen quashing the two sections concluding

We find substance in the submission made by the writ petitioners that once the proviso to Reg.9(IV) of the Regulations, 2000 envisages giving of weightage of marks in the form of incentive at the rate of 10% of the marks obtained for each year of service in remote and/or difficult areas of the State upto 30% of the marks obtained in NEET, there appears no reasonable justification for the State Government to restrict in awarding to the eligible in-service candidates upto 10% of the marks secured irrespective of length of service rendered and such restriction imposed by the State Government in para-4 of its orderdt.20.03.2017, in our considered view, is not in conformity with the mandate of Reg.9(IV) of the Regulations, 2000 & deserves to be quashed

Attached is the full judgement below