PUDUCHERRY: Two student and parents' welfare associations have urged the Union Territory administration and the centre to ensure that the 64 MBBS seats reserved for Puducherry candidates in the Jipmer continue to be allotted exclusively to eligible students of Puducherry origin.
In separate representations submitted to Union Health Minister J P Nadda, Lieutenant Governor K Kailashnathan, Chief Minister N Rangasamy and senior officials of the health, higher education and revenue departments, the Pondicherry CENTAC students parents association and the Pondicherry state students and parents welfare association expressed concern over reports that the admission norms governing the Puducherry quota in Jipmer could be revised from the 2026-27 academic year.
The associations pointed out that Jipmer Medical College earmarks 64 MBBS seats for Puducherry candidates, comprising 48 seats in Puducherry and 16 in Karaikal. They alleged that a sizeable number of these seats are being secured by students from other states who become eligible under the local quota after pursuing a few years of schooling in the Union Territory and obtaining residency certificates.
According to the associations, such admissions diminish opportunities for students who were born, brought up and educated in Puducherry and who depend on the local quota for access to medical education.
They further noted that admissions through the Centralised Admission Committee (CENTAC) are governed by clearly defined eligibility and reservation norms, and argued that similar principles should continue to be followed for the Puducherry quota seats in Jipmer.
Association president V Balasubramanian said the union health ministry should retain the admission criteria followed in previous years. He pointed out that Puducherry students had secured hundreds of government-quota MBBS seats through CENTAC during the 2025-26 academic year and stressed that the 64 Jipmer seats reserved for the Union Territory should likewise be filled under the existing eligibility framework.
The associations claimed that more than 5,000 students from Puducherry are expected to appear for NEET and urged the authorities not to alter the current admission mechanism, stating that it was essential to safeguard educational opportunities for local students.