BANGALORE: Tough days are ahead for postgraduate medical seat aspirants as the government and private college managements are on a collision course. On the State Government's directions, the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) has decided to conduct a common Postgraduate Entrance Test (PGET) on February 12 for admissions to all the medical and dental colleges in the State, including government, private unaided and even deemed universities.

Gazette notification

The State Government on Thursday issued a gazette notification to this effect, and formally authorised RGUHS to conduct the test.

The health university has already issued advertisements inviting applications for the entrance test.

The university had earlier scheduled the test for February 5 for only government quota seats on the lines of last year's PGET.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka Private Medical and Dental Colleges' Association has decided to go ahead with its own entrance test.

The test will be conducted by the Consortium of Medical, Engineering and Dental Colleges of Karnataka (COMEDK) on January 29. "We have already received 4,300 applications for the test. The Venkataraman committee has not asked us not to hold the test," S. Kumar of the consortium told The Hindu.

The association, at a meeting on Thursday, resolved to go ahead with preparations for the entrance test as scheduled, and later take appropriate remedy as per the law.

COMEDK had conducted both undergraduate and postgraduate tests for its member institutions last year.

Dr. Kumar said the Venkataraman committee's role was only to oversee the professional college admission process and ensure that it is done in an objective manner.

The panel could not decide who should hold the test, he said.

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu