Delhi University to follow IITs, IIMs on quota

NEW DELHI : Delhi University, which will be soon accepting applications for undergraduate courses for almost 35,000 students, has decided to toe the IIT, IIM line when it comes to reservations. The premier university will implement 27% OBC reservation, but has decided to stagger the quota over the coming three years. The university will accept 6,300 applications over and above last year���s seats.

DU vice-chancellor Deepak Pental said: ���Keeping in mind the Supreme Court order, we have informed the HRD ministry that we would like to implement one-third of the reservation this year, with the rest being absorbed over the next two years.���

In effect, the university would increase seats by 18% this year, so that 9% OBC reservation can be clubbed with the 22.5% existing reservations for SC/ST students. While university authorities declined to give exact number of seats estimates made from last year���s numbers indicate that around 6,500 more seats would need to be created to accommodate the quota. Said SK Vij, dean of students welfare at DU, ���When calculating the number of sanctioned seats for SC/ST students, we keep a figure of around 35,000 seats for under graduate courses in colleges in DU.���

Keeping that figure in mind, an expansion of 18%-to make way for the 9% OBC reservation-would mean an extra 6,300 seats. This would take the total number of seats to over 41,000 in the UG courses. Of these, almost 4,000 (9%) will be for OBC candidates.