[NEET-PG 2021] Supreme Court to pass order tomorrow in plea for stray round of counselling for vacant AIQ seats

The Supreme Court will deliver its verdict tomorrow in the pleas which sought a fresh stray counselling round to fill up vacant All India Quota (AIQ) seats for postgraduate courses in relation to the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) 2021 [Dr Ashima Goel and ors vs Medical Counselling Committee and ors]..After it was informed today that eight rounds of counselling had already been completed, the Bench of Justices MR Shah and Aniruddha Bose said that it would pass a detailed order tomorrow as the counselling rounds have to end at some point. "We were not aware that 8 rounds of counselling had happened before the seats remained vacant. These students may be willing to join in third year also. There needs to be a stop. Anyways, [we] will pass a detailed order," the Bench orally observed. .Yesterday, the Supreme Court had asked the Central government to explain why 1,456 postgraduate medical seats have still been left vacant and hinted at ordering compensation to all doctor-students who are jeopardised due to non-filling of such seats.The Centre filed an affidavit the very same day stating that the software for counselling had closed, preventing further rounds to fill up seats.It was pointed out that an extra round to fill up vacant seats at this stage would also disrupt the counselling process for NEET-PG 2022 as the refund of security deposits had already been initiated..When the matter was taken up today, the Bench stated at the outset that it was more concerned with 1,400 seats lying vacant given the need for specialist doctors in the country, rather than the technicalities. "We are concerned with nation as whole and country will get 1400 plus super speciality doctors and it is in larger public interest ... Such a big number of seats are going vacant ... Try to find out a solution ... [The] Government will not be happy to get more than 1400 postgraduate doctors?" the Bench remarked. .The Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Balbir Singh, however, pointed out that the issue is a yearly one which is caused more due to candidates not choosing the non-clinical seats.A doctor, who appeared in-person, concurred with the ASG's submission. "Such a vacancy was there last year also and it was 600. We had reduced percentile too and absorbed 25,000 more students. Still no one opted for these seats," the doctor said..The ASG added that the vacant seats are perishable and the exercise of filling them now is no longer useful as States have also not seen any takers. "Classes have already started in February and now classes for another 6 to 8 months is not feasible. NEET 2022 teaching will also be compromised. Security and invitations of these seats have to be brought in fresh and it will seriously compromise 2022 process," he said..Counsel for some of the petitioners then submitted that they would apply for the vacant seats in a counselling round that could be completed in just one day.However, Justice Shah reiterated that this practice of seeking additional rounds, year after year, must end. He also stressed that with the pandemic subsiding, there can be no compromise on education."Special ... special round etc... This has to stop. For many years such seats have remained vacant," Justice Shah orally remarked. .Advocate Gaurav Sharma appeared for the National Medical Council and the National Board of Education..[Follow our coverage of today's hearing]