Mop Up and Stray Vacancy: The Rounds That Trap You

Mop up and stray vacancy, and what they cost you

Four rounds, on a Supreme Court order

The Medical Counselling Committee has run four rounds of All India Quota counselling since 2021-22. Round 3 is the earlier mop up round, Round 4 the stray vacancy round.

Every round carries its own rules

Each round is a separate round. Once a round starts, its rules apply to everybody, including candidates who were allotted or admitted in an earlier round.

Join in Round 3 and you cannot resign

A candidate who joins in the third round of All India Quota, deemed or central university counselling cannot resign from it, and cannot take part in any further round.

The stray round has no exit at all

In the stray vacancy round the allotted seat has to be joined. The security deposit of a candidate who does not join is forfeited, and no resignation is allowed.

Reserved seats convert in the third round

Vacant reserved seats are converted in the third round under a published list. Seats kept for candidates with disabilities move to the parent category, and so on down.

One form only, and nothing offline

A candidate may submit only one registration form. A second form means the candidate is barred from the allotment process and the candidature cancelled. Nothing offline counts.

Want to know how many PG seats exist

Our guide to PG seats in India sets out how many seats exist, how they are split between government, private and deemed colleges, and how fast the number has grown.