"Quotas for SC/ST students in the undergraduate courses for the All India Entrance Examination willbe introduced this year," Ramadoss said. "This has always been a commitment of the government and the step was long overdue. Last year, we had introduced a similar quota for post-graduate medical entrance examinations."

About 1,184 SC/ST students are expected to benefit from the reservation in both undergraduate and postgraduate courses.

The Central Board for Secondary Education will conduct the preliminary test for the entrance in April and the final in May.

While each state has its own quota, a total of 15 per cent seats in all state government colleges are to be set aside for the All India Entrance Exams for MBBS and BDS courses.

Till now, all the 2,075 MBBS/BDS seats were filled on the basis of merit only.

The step brings with it fears that the field of medicine wn no longer draw the brightest minds in the country .

"Being a good doctor is not just about getting admitted into a college, it's also about studying very hard to make the grade. I suspect many of the students who get in through the quota will have trouble keeping on par with others and will take twice as long to get an MBBS degree," said a junior resident at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, where students had resisted Ramadoss's efforts to introduce reservation in medical colleges.

The decision came after the Supreme Court heard a Health Ministry plea seeking reservation in medical colleges and left it to the Centre to take a decision.