Colleges, university open up reserved seats

KOLKATA: Several colleges and universities have opened up vacant reserved seats for waiting-list candidates from the general category to take admission.
While many institutes have already de-reserved the seats, others have started the procedure of de-reservation to accommodate candidates who are yet to secure seats in subjects of their choice in their preferred colleges.But colleges, which have failed to fill even their general-category seats after several rounds of admissions, have decided not to opt for de-reservation of seats under quota.
According to the rules, colleges have to set aside a certain percentage of seats for candidates belonging to SC, ST and OBC categories. The West Bengal State Higher Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2013, has a clause that allows de-reservation of seats with the consent of the backward classes welfare department. It can be done only if seats in the reserved categories do not fill up even after the deadline for admission gets over.
Presidency University has drawn up a list from waitlisted candidates after de-reservation. The provisional merit list for this round will be published on Wednesday. “Some seats opened up after de-reservation of reserved seats. We invited application for those seats from students who have already applied and made it till the waiting list. No fresh application has been invited,” said a member of the admission committee at the university. The university had close to 32 vacant seats in the reserved category.
This year, an average of 30% UG seats have remained vacant in city institutes, most of them affiliated to Calcutta University, stated a report by the higher education department. According to principals, most of those seats are in the reserved category.
Authorities at Seth Anandaram Jaipuria College, too, have finished de-reserving seats. While many seats have found takers, some are still vacant. “A college can apply for de-reservation of seats only after the admission process gets over and the authorities are sure no one else would get through. Before the process, the authorities have to issue multiple notices, informing about availability of seats in the reserved category,” said Asok Mukhopadhyay, principal of Seth Anandaram Jaipuria College. Institutes,like Bethune, Lady Brabourne and Scottish Church, too, have opened up seats in some subjects. “General-category seats have filled up, but some reserved seats were vacant,” said an official at Bethune College.
A principal at an evening college in south Kolkata said they decided against de-reserving seats as a large number of general category seats were vacant. “It doesn’t make much sense as over one-third general-category seats are vacant,” said the principal.