FOR OUR EYES ONLY? An operation under way with medical | students in attendance

Sayan Ghosh,
Address not given.

I think the government must keep a quota for local students. It should not give in to demands of students of other states if our own boys and girls have to suffer due to lack of vacancy. The government may consider allotting seats to outsiders for high tuition fees, but their education must not be subsidised by tax-payers.

 

JOYDEEP CHATTERJEE,
Shyambazar.

I don’t think boys and girls admitted through the Joint Entrance Examination will get the benefit of a quota when they apply for a job. Moreover, if the states start keeping quotas for exams, too, it will paint a dismal picture throughout the country. So, I think it is very important that quality be the only cornerstone by which candidates are selected.

HUSSAIN MODAN,
Loudon Street.

No, berths should not be reserved for local candidates after the Joint Entrance Examination domicile bar is lifted. There should always be scope for open competition and no allotment of seats should be made on any ground other than merit. If the economy has to prosper, if we desire the best talents to emerge and deliver the goods for the overall betterment of the nation as a whole, the proposition for reservation should be rejected in entirety. This is the era of globalisation and if India has to stand a chance in this context, an ambience of impartiality has to be created in these examinations, which happens to be the yardstick for measurement of the knowledge of youngsters.

Dinabandhu Mukherjee,
Behala.

I think berths in large numbers need to be reserved for local candidates. Outstation students, who, after completing the medical or engineering courses, return to their own states to settle there, will not be of service to us. The huge expenditure from the state exchequer to run the colleges and universities will ultimately benefit candidates from other states. In most cases, the state will not get any services from them. Both medical and engineering courses are expensive. Many meritorious students, not from well-to-do backgrounds, take these courses. If they fail to get into colleges here, they will be forced to travel elsewhere for higher education. This will put their guardians under additional financial pressure. Admission of local students will benefit the government, students and their guardians, as well.

Kaberi Ghosh Roy,
Dum Dum Park.

Yes, I feel berths should be reserved for local candidates after the domicile bar for JEE is lifted. Even for such examinations conducted by states like Karnataka and Maharashtra, there are separate seats reserved for ‘local’ and ‘non-local’ candidates and a separate ‘fee structure’ also exists.

Ayush Datta,
Lake Gardens.

Reservation of berths for West Bengal students will be a much-needed thing once the domicile bar is lifted, as candidates from other states will also vie for the coveted seats.

Purabi Sen,
Shyambazar.

Any sort of reservation of seats for local candidates will only prove that our students are incompetent to face stiff competition. They should prove their merit in order to get into the premier technical institutes. In the long run, this will enhance the quality of the exam.

Indranil moulik,
Salt Lake.

It all depends on what the other states are doing. If they have a quota for local students, why not us? The government can also consider charging the local candidates lower tuition fees, as is the practice in universities in the US. But they should fight it out on the basis of merit with candidates from other states.

Suryamukhi chatterjea,
Ballygunge.

I am all for all-out competition. Let the best students get the chance to study. As our higher education is highly subsidised, it is only fair that only the most meritorious benefit by it, irrespective of their domicile status.

sanjit sarkar,
Dhakuria.

Why should students of other states be invited over here? Are there no colleges in the rest of India? The education system of a region is typical of the tastes and culture of the local populace, be it the holiday calendar or the food served in the hostels. Making students from all states study together will only lead to complications.

Tapti roy,
Jodhpur Park.

So many private engineering colleges have come up of late in the state and many of them are reportedly running to empty seats as an adequate number of students do not cross the minimum qualifying marks in Joint Entrance Examination. If the domicile bar is lifted, more candidates will sit for the test and more will qualify. That will mean more revenue inflow for us. The colleges, too, will not be at risk of closing down. This will help our economy.

Debyani Basu,
Birati.

Primary education may be our birthright, but not higher education. Merit should be the sole criterion here. So if preference is given to local candidates, then this would be severe injustice to candidates from outside. Everyone should be allowed to carve out his own path and not be pushed in through the backdoor.