MUMBAI, July 24 -- Students applying to private medical colleges for undergraduate admission are concerned at the introduction of reservations for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) within the open category - a first. While the move aligns with constitutional mandates and has already been implemented in government and aided institutions, there was no formal announcement for private medical colleges. Instead, the new quota - 10% of the seats in the open category - came to light when students and their parents noticed its mention in the admission brochure released by the Maharashtra Common Entrance Test (CET) cell. They say the introduction of the quota without a corresponding increase in the total seat intake would reduce the number of seats open to all in the general category. According to the brochure released on Wednesday, the reservation applies to all private unaided medical colleges (excluding minority institutions) under the state quota. "In government / government aided / corporation / private unaided institutions (excluding minority institutions), 10% of the available seats under state quota shall be reserved for candidates belonging to EWS category," the brochure states under the constitutional reservation annexure. Parent groups argue that this clause, if enforced without increasing seat capacity, will shrink the already limited pool of general merit seats. "This is the first time EWS quota is being applied to private medical colleges. Without increasing the seat intake, it will affect open-category students," said Brijesh Sutaria, a parent representative. Sutaria pointed out that admissions to private medical colleges fall under state regulatory bodies, and any increase in seat capacity must be approved by the National Medical Commission (NMC). "Unless the state approaches NMC and gets a one-time seat hike, general category students will suffer a setback," he said. Another parent, Sudha Shenoy, cited the 2019 Supreme Court order, which mandated that the EWS quota be implemented only after increasing 25% of the total seat intake. "The government did increase seats in government colleges following that order, but no such step has been taken for private institutions. If private colleges are not allowed to raise intake, this implementation will only reduce open seats," she said. Sutaria also highlighted that EWS students already receive financial support under state schemes - 50% fee reimbursement for boys and 100% for girls....