Mumbai: City colleges are opposing govt’s decision to mandate the surrender of management quota seats after the second round of first-year junior college (FYJC) admissions. College principals claim that students typically begin seeking admission under this quota only after they fail to secure seats in the first two or three rounds. They believe the new rule defeats the management quota’s purpose and could limit opportunities for students. Some are planning to write to govt to seek an extension as the second round concludes on Monday. Junior colleges can reserve 5% of the total seats under the management quota.The govt directive also mandates that students apply for the quota through the admission portal, which many may not be aware of, say principals. “If rules are changed, it should be notified prominently and also, it should be for the larger good,” says a principal, adding that many students may lose an opportunity to even apply. He adds that management admissions should not done via the portal as they can’t be regulated. Another principal of a college where only two management quota seats have been filled so far points out that students start approaching colleges for quota seats only after two to three rounds and if they fail to get their preferred college. “Asking colleges to surrender the management quota seats after two rounds would be like eating into the management’s rights, as most of our seats are vacant now. This year, govt has made arbitrary changes to the process without consulting stakeholders. And this change was mentioned in passing in one line in the May 6 govt resolution, but most colleges were occupied with the issue of the govt’s move to apply social reservations in non-minority seats of minority colleges.”A senior official said govt is aware of the issue and is holding consultations to see if an extension can be granted.
