New local quota rules put future of 300 medical aspirants in quandary

Hyderabad: At least 300 meritorious students from Telangana will lose an opportunity to pursue MBBS in their own state due to the last minute change in the definition of who a ‘local’ is, by the health, medical and family welfare department.

Parents of these students have formed a WhatsApp group and are planning to approach the High Court against the new rule.

“Our concern is that the students of this soil cannot pursue MBBS here or elsewhere because they are non-locals in other states also. All we are saying is that the government should have made an announcement on the new definition of local category well in advance before the AP Reorganisation Act ceased to exist on June 2 this year,” N. Gopalakrishna, a parent, told Deccan Chronicle.

Though the Congress government successfully prevented the entry of students from Andhra and Rayalaseema regions from this academic year by scrapping the 15 per cent unreserved category, students born and brought up in Telangana but who studied intermediate outside will be badly hit because of the amendment in the local category definition.

However, health minister C. Damodar Rajanarsimha on Tuesday made it clear that there would not be any change in the definition of local category and admissions would be made in accordance with the GO Ms No, 33. The department brought the GO on July 19 but it came to light only on Saturday when the Kaloji University of Health Sciences issued the notification for MBBS admissions.

The minister also dismissed allegations of BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao that the new GO was issued to facilitate entry of students from other states and denying an opportunity to locals.

Earlier, Rama Rao sprang a surprise by announcing that thousands of students from other states come to Hyderabad for better coaching and would be treated as locals under the new. In reality several students from Telangana go to Vijayawada and Kota in Rajasthan to study Intermediate and take coaching classes for NEET.

In a strong reply to Rama Rao’s allegations, the Chief Minister’s Office in the social media platform X said the condition that the students should have studied in Telangana for four consecutive years was part of GO 114 issued by the previous BRS government and the same was retained in the new GO.

Hence, the allegation that students from other states would become locals of Telangana because of the new GO was incorrect.

Further, the CMO said as per the earlier rule students from other states would be considered as locals if they studied for any four years between Class 6 and Class 12 in Telangana. This rule, which was part of the AP Reorganisation Act, could not be continued after June 2, 2024.