Relief for 50 Jammu medical college students; fresh counselling on Jan 24

JAMMU: In a significant relief for the 50 students affected by the revocation of the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Institute of Medical Excellence (SMVDIME), the Jammu and Kashmir Board of Professional Entrance Examinations (BOPEE) has scheduled fresh counselling on January 24 to place them in seven government-run medical colleges across the Union Territory.Chief minister Omar Abdullah confirmed that the government has resolved the college allocation issue for the selected MBBS candidates of SMVDIME."With BOPEE now issuing the counselling schedule, the selected candidates can move ahead with their studies," the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) said on X.According to a notification issued by the controller of examinations of BOPEE, Prof Gurvinder Raj Verma, the 50 supernumerary seats will be distributed strictly based on the NEET-UG merit of the candidates and their preferences among the seven government medical colleges.The notification specifies that eight students will be allotted seats in GMC Anantnag and seven each in GMC Baramulla, Doda, Handwara, Kathua, Rajouri, and Udhampur."Pursuant to Health and Medical Education Department communication of January 21, it is hereby notified that the concerned candidates who were provisionally allotted seats in different rounds of counselling by the Board for admission to the MBBS course in SMVDIME, Katra… the Board shall conduct the physical round of counselling to accommodate the students to the GMC within J-K against the supernumerary seats so created," the notification stated.

The Board has scheduled the counselling for January 24 at its offices in the twin capitals of Srinagar and Jammu. Candidates unable to attend in person may authorise a blood relative to participate on their behalf in the format prescribed by the Board. The representative must carry the authorisation letter and a valid ID, including an Aadhaar card.Supernumerary seats are additional seats created beyond the normal intake, often to ensure representation for specific groups.Earlier this month, the National Medical Commission’s Medical Assessment and Rating Board withdrew the letter of permission granted to SMVDIME for non-compliance with minimum standards. It had stated that students admitted to the college during counselling must be accommodated in other institutions in Jammu and Kashmir as supernumerary seats.Since November last year, Sangharsh Samiti, a conglomerate of right-wing organisations backed by the BJP, has been leading an agitation in Jammu demanding cancellation of admissions to the college and reservation of seats exclusively for students devoted to Mata Vaishno Devi.BOPEE had earlier said it could not conduct fresh counselling for MBBS admissions and that allocation of supernumerary seats to former SMVDIME students should be decided at the government level.In a letter to the Union Territory’s Health and Medical Education Department, an under-secretary level officer of the Board stated, "I am directed to submit that the matter was placed before the Board for detailed deliberations and it has observed that it is constrained to conduct any new counselling for the year 2025-26 as it is not mandated go beyond the counselling schedule issued by Medical Counselling Committee (MCC), MoHFW, New Delhi for current academic session.

"The letter added that under MCC directions, the data of 1,410 MBBS candidates, including the 50 from SMVDIME, had been updated on their portal as of the last date of joining, December 31, 2025."Further, the creation and allotment of supernumerary seats does not fall within the ambit of J-K BOPEE," it said, adding that the fresh allocation should be made at the government level in consultation with the National Medical Commission and the respective medical colleges in Jammu and Kashmir.Among the inaugural batch of 50 SMVDIME students, 42 were Muslims—mostly from Kashmir—seven were Hindu students from Jammu, and one was a Sikh candidate. This composition had triggered demands for scrapping the admissions and reserving all seats for Hindu students.On January 8, the Chief Minister reiterated, "It is our legal responsibility to accommodate them. We will adjust them by creating supernumerary seats in colleges close to their homes so that their education does not suffer."