Bhubaneswar, Aug. 24: Counselling for admission to the MBBS and BDS courses in the state began today at the SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack.
The SCB is the nodal centre for medical counselling even as the Medical Council of India (MCI) has put a hold on 100 seats each at the Hi-Tech Medical College in Rourkela and the Sardar Rajas Medical College in Bhawanipatna. Fifty out of the 150 seats in city-based Kalinga Institute of Medical Sciences (KIMS), have also been put on hold, citing lack of adequate infrastructure.
This year, the Odisha Joint Entrance Examination (OJEE) is conducting the counselling for 85 per cent of the seats.
As many as 2,911 students, who have qualified for the All-India Pre-Medical Test and are registered with the OJEE, can take part in the counselling for the 650 MBBS and 150 BDS seats in the state.
"Students can register themselves on the website www.ojee.nic.in till August 28," said OJEE chairman Tusharkant Nath.
Verification of documents would be held from August 29 to September 1, and the first phase of seat allotment would be made on September 6. The students will have to report at the JEE cell in Bhubaneswar for provisional admission between September 7 and 11.
The second phase of choice-filling would be held on September 13 and 14, while seat allotments would be made on September 15. The list of vacant seats would be announced on September 19. The third phase of choice-filling would be held on September 20 and 21, and the seat allotments would be made on September 23. Spot admission for the vacant seats would be held on September 29.
In another development, the state government would transfer 124 students of the Sardar Rajas Medical College to other institutions, said a government official.
The students have been agitating in front of their college since July 30, alleging lack of infrastructure and faculty members. Addressing a recently held news conference in Bhubaneswar, the students alleged that the college did not have a single permanent faculty member and the hospital was defunct.
