This was announced in the Assembly by Higher Education Minister Sudarshan Roy Chowdhury on Thursday.
“The question of reservation of seats in higher education to expand opportunities to OBCs has been under the consideration of the State government for quite some time,” Mr. Chowdhury said. It was based on the lines of OBC reservation in Central institutions of higher education. The reservation would not reduce the intake of the students belonging to other categories, as the number of seats will be increased.
However, the implementation of reservation in Medical and Engineering Colleges (where the number of seats is determined by a Central Regulatory Authority ) will depend on the permission given by the authority concerned, he added.
It will be implemented in two phases. The decision is expected to be of particular benefit to minorities. Of the 53 communities listed as most backward among the OBCs and categorised as OBC-A, 49 are Muslim. Ten per cent seats will be reserved for OBC-A, starting with five per cent in the 2011-12 session and additional five per cent the next academic year.