Process of availing 7.5% horizontal reservation to be simplified

CHENNAI: The process of identifying beneficiaries under the 7.5% reservation for students in TN government schools to get admissions in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) will be simplified in the coming academic year.

In 2021, the Tamil Nadu government adopted a bill in the State assembly to allocate 7.5% of seats on a ‘preferential basis’ for students in State-run schools to get admissions in engineering, agriculture, veterinary, fisheries, law, and other professional courses offered in universities, private colleges, government-aided and government colleges.

Accordingly, students, who wanted to avail the quota, should have to studied continuously in State-run schools from Classes 6 to 12. This year, over 7,000 students have availed the special reservation quota and got admissions, especially in the engineering colleges across the State. However, there were complaints from students and parents about several formalities such as getting a TC from schools to avail the reservation.

A senior official from the Directorate of Technical Education (DOTE) said that students who have studied continuously from classes 6 to 12 in the same government school did not face any problems. “However, students might have studied in government schools according to the prescribed period. However, those who studied in different government schools faced issues especially to avail transfer certificate from each school,” he pointed out.

According to the official, the database of students, who apply for higher studies by availing of 7.5% reservation, will be centralised. “Students will be asked to give a single TC and the school in which they have studied Class 12 will facilitate the consolidation of the transfer data from one school to another,” he added.

In addition to the TC issue, awareness will also be created among the Class 12 government school students on horizontal reservation. Trained teachers would help them in the application process to get seats in HEIs.

“Students in rural areas, do not know that government would pay the tuition fee, hostel fee, and transportation fee in full for those availed the reservation quota,” he stated.