Points favouring minority students missed, claims official

Maharashtra Minorities department has claimed that lack of co-ordination with the education department has led to key points, favouring minorities in educational institutions, being given a miss in a notification of higher education department last month.
According to a senior official of minorities affairs department, the education department's notification on fee structure and admission regulation published on May 12, made Government Resolutions (GR) of minority department issued on May 27, 2013, and June 18, 2014, null and void.
"There were some pertinent points in our GRs issued in 2013 and 2014 that have been missed in the notification by education department. For instance, we had stated that minority institutions should fill up at least 51 per cent students of their community.

If they fail to do so, these institutions should publish at least four advertisements, two in regional newspapers and two in national dailies," the official said.
He further said, out of the four advertisements, one should be in a English daily, one in Marathi and remaining in the language of the minority institution.
If the institutions still fails to fill the required numbers, seats should be given to students belonging to SC, ST communities, or linguistic minority.

"All the rights of minority institutions have been taken away. Minority institutions have the right to establish an administrative institute, this includes admissions as well.

Now, as per the education department ordinance, some admissions will be done by a particular institution and the rest should be surrendered to Centralised Admission Process (CAP). Here, right of admission of the institution has been taken away," the official said.
He further said that these points were brought to the notification of the education department before it came out with the ordinance, but cognisance was not taken.
When contacted, state education minister Vinod Tawde, he said his department has received the file by minorities department with certain suggestions and that necessary changes will be made.
He denied that there was lack of coordination between the two departments.