KOLKATA: Nine out of 10 engineering seats at Jadavpur University will now be reserved for domicile candidates. This proposal from engineering departments was ratified by the university executive council on Monday, paving the way for its introduction in the next admission sesson.There is, however, a small hurdle — a nod from the state that should have been a mere formality may now be a bigger problem given the elections around the corner.Though the faculty council has decided to implement the domicile reservation from the 2019-2020 academic sessions, sources at Jadavpur Univeristy said it may be difficult for the government to take a decision before the elections get over on May 19.Of the 16 engineering departments at JU, 13 were in favour of 90% reservation for domicile candidates. The departments of electronics & telecommunication and power were against it while the computer science & engineering department was split on the issue . Those against the change argued that the existing norms had led to a steady supply of quality students over the years. “The diversity of students has helped the university,” a faculty member reasoned.However, a majority of departments accepted the proposal saying that since the state-run university receives funds and facilities from the government, it was prudent to ensure candidates from Bengal benefited. Some also said several premier state-run technology institutes outside Bengal had similar reservations for domicile candidates of those states.There are around 1,200 seats in engineering, of which 45% are for candidates under SC, ST, OBC, PH and others. “The domicile reservation will be applicable on the remaining seats,” a source said.

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