MHRD decides no spot round for NIT/IITs this year, aspirants to waste a year

MANGALURU: Mangaluru: The hopes of thousands of NIT/IIT aspirants who were eagerly waiting MHRD to conduct spotround/ special round to fill vacant seats have fizzled out after the ministry decided not go for another counselling this year. However, from next year onwards, counselling will be conducted continuously till August 10 or till all seats are filled up in these technical institutions.
Meanwhile, students and MP Sushmita Dev from Assam are planning to move to Supreme Court to file PIL to conduct spot or special round.On Monday evening, Ministry of Human Resource Development tweeted: HRM @PrakashJavdekar considered spot round for filling vacancies in #NITs sympathetically. (1/3). Since Supreme Court ordered no admission after Aug 15, this year no spot round was possible in #NITs @PrakashJavdekar (2/3). @PrakashJavdekar directed counselling shall be conducted continuously till Aug 10 or till vacancies are filled up(3/3).
Speaking to TOI, spokesperson from the MHRD clarified that ministry has no plans to go for special round this as the deadline set by Supreme Court is over by August 15. “However, from next year onwards, counselling of Joint Seat Allocation Authority (JoSAA) will continue till all the seats are filled in NIT/IIT/GFTI/IIITs across the country,” he said.
The thousands of eligible aspirants have alleged that JoSAA closed sixth round of counselling on July 20, though SC deadline was August 15. “Why it has not conducted counselling after six rounds. According to SC guidelines, the counselling can be conducted till the deadline and all the seats are filled. Why MHRD and JoSSAA has not gone ahead with another rounds of counselling to fill hundreds of vacant seats,” questioned aspirants, who are now united through Whatsapp group to fight against the MHRD to go for special/spot round.
Minister kept in darkness?
Sushmita Dev, Member of Parliament from Silchar in Assam who met HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar on Tuesday opined that minister is not at all aware about the entire development and he is misguided by his subordinates. “I explained him last year Central Seat Allocation Board (CSAB) was asked by Supreme Court to find 'feasible' way to fill up the 3000 plus vacant seats. CSAB went ahead and conducted the special round. When there was administration problem during Telangana and Andhra Pradesh bifurcation, again SC intervened and extended dates of admission and counselling,” she said adding that minister has directed his officers to get ready necessary documents so that ministry can appeal SC and go for spotround to fill vacant seats.
Sushmita, who threatened to move to SC to file PIL if seats are not filled, said she will be again meeting Prakash Javadekar to discuss issue on Wednesday morning.
Vacant seats
According to JoSAA-2016, final statistics list, as many as 1,518 seats are vacant out of 18,013 total seats available in in 31 NITs. Among them highest seats are vacant in NIT Agartala (126 seats); SVNIT, Surat (115 seats); Dr B R Ambedkar NIT, Jalandhar (110 seats); NIT, Srinagar, (108 seats);NIT Nagaland (107 seats) and NIT, Rourkela (101 seats). However, currently the number of seats in most of NITs have doubled or tripled as most of the candidates have not taken admission after sixth round of counselling or have quit course after NEET results. RTI query reveals that around 180 seats are vacant in NIT, Rourkela but JoSAA website shows only 101 vacant seats after sixth round of counselling.