ETS will review income limit for reserves in NEET-PG: Center

New Delhi, Dt
The Center said in the Supreme Court on Thursday that it would review the annual income limit of Rs 8 lakh fixed for determining the economically weaker class (EWS) category for reserves in Net PG. The central government told the apex court that it would form a committee to determine the criteria for fixing the EWS category and the committee would need four weeks to do so. Knit's counseling is therefore suspended for four weeks.
Justice d. Y. A bench of Justices Chandrachud, Suryakant and Vikram Nath was told by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta that a committee would be constituted to determine the criteria for determining the EWS category and it would take four weeks for the committee to do so. Knit (PG) counseling will be postponed for another four weeks as per the earlier assurance given in the court.
The Central and Medical Counseling Committee's (MCC) July 9 declaration has been challenged in the Supreme Court. Under this declaration, 8 per cent reservation has been provided to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and 10 per cent to EWS for admission in National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-PG) for medical courses in the current academic year.
Justice Suryakant said that the EWS reserve is a very capable and progressive type of reserve. All the states should support this effort of the Center. The bench said that the only question was whether the category should be scientifically fixed and the decision of the central government to review the pre-determined criteria was commendable.
Arvind Datar, senior counsel on behalf of the applicant students, said that as the academic session was long overdue, the central government should withdraw the implementation of EWS reservation for the next academic year and start counseling for the current year. The bench agreed with the donor's arguments and asked Mehta if he could withdraw the implementation of the constitutional amendment by next academic year and start counseling for the current academic year.
In reply, Tushar Mehta said that the government has decided to implement the 108th constitutional amendment for the current academic year and it is not appropriate to withdraw it. They will inform the court if the process of fixing the series is completed four weeks in advance.