Helped by the 4.5 per cent minority sub-quota, nearly 400 Muslim aspirants have cracked the IIT-JEE this year – the largest number of Muslim boys and girls ever to have scored at what is among the world’s most competitive entrance examinations. A total 325 aspirants belonging to economically and socially backward sections of minority communities have been shortlisted for admission to the 15 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) under the sub-quota. The IIT Joint Admission Board is yet to analyse the profile of the qualifying students, but most of these 325 are thought to be Muslim. Over 180 Muslim candidates have been shortlisted in the general category as well.
A tentative count shows that a total of 391 Muslim candidates have been shortlisted for counselling. The highest rank made by a Muslim candidate is said to be 159th. A total 24,112 candidates among the nearly 5.6 lakh who sat for IIT-JEE 2012 have been shortlisted. The government has been encouraging the setting up of centres to coach students from minority communities for competitive examinations. Private centres focused on minority students, such as Rahmani 30 in Bihar, have come up over the last few years.