Bhubaneswar, Jan. 14 -- In a major move aimed at addressing the long-standing demand of backward classes, the Odisha government has plans to extend reservation benefits to medical and engineering education from the current academic year, sources said on Wednesday.

According to the sources, the Mohan Majhi-led government is preparing to introduce 11.25 per cent seat reservation for Other Backwards Classes (OBCs) in professional courses such as medicine and engineering. Until now, OBC reservation in the State was limited to higher education at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.

In a significant proposal, the government is also considering doubling the reservation quota for Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST) in medical...