HRDA Opposes Bid To Dismantle Convener Quota In Med Admission
HRDA alleged that private medical college associations were ignoring earlier division bench judgments and established constitutional principles governing admissions, fee regulation, and prevention of profiteering: Reports
HYDERABAD: The Healthcare Reforms Doctors Association (HRDA) has expressed strong opposition to what it termed calculated attempts by private medical college management associations to dismantle the Convener Quota system in undergraduate and postgraduate medical admissions under the pretext of introducing a uniform fee structure.
In a release issued on Monday, HRDA warned that such a move would severely affect meritorious students from economically weaker and middle‑class backgrounds, turning merit‑based medical education into a privilege accessible only to the affluent.
The association said convener quota seats have historically ensured affordability and equity in medical education. Any shift towards a uniform fee structure without safeguarding the quota would impose an unbearable financial burden on students and parents, particularly those from rural and disadvantaged sections.
HRDA cautioned that the proposed policy change would effectively exclude poor and middle‑class students from medical education, accelerate the commercialisation of medical seats, and adversely impact the future of public healthcare by reducing diversity and social representation within the medical profession.
The doctors’ body also raised concerns over what it described as the selective interpretation of a recent order passed by a single judge of the High Court in Writ Petition No. 5779 of 2017 (dated December 2, 2025). HRDA alleged that private medical college associations were ignoring earlier division bench judgments and established constitutional principles governing admissions, fee regulation, and prevention of profiteering.
In an urgent appeal, HRDA urged the Telangana government to immediately approach the High Court by filing an appeal before the division bench to prevent irreversible harm to students and the admission process. It also called upon the government to maintain and protect the convener quota system in both UG and PG admissions as a non‑negotiable safeguard for merit and equity.