Medical and dental colleges in the state continue to face an acute shortage of eligible candidates for their NRI quota seats, with Baba Farid University of Health Sciences (BFUHS) receiving only six applicants for 381 MBBS and BDS seats declared vacant after the first round of counselling and admission.Of these vacant seats, 167 are NRI quota MBBS seats spread across 12 medical colleges, while 214 are BDS seats in 16 dental colleges across the state.The shortfall follows a similarly poor response in the first round, when just 63 applicants had come forward for 431 NRI quota MBBS and BDS seats. Of these, only 50 candidates eventually took admission — 47 opting for MBBS seats and three for BDS seats — leaving the bulk of the lucrative quota unfilled and pushing colleges into a second round with little improvement in interest.The NRI quota remains one of the most lucrative revenue streams for all medical and dental colleges in the state, given its steep fee structure. An NRI candidate is required to pay a full course tuition fee of US $1.10 lakh for an MBBS seat and US $44,000 for a BDS seat — considerably higher than fees under the management and government quotas. With such a wide gap between seats and applicants across two rounds, colleges banking on this income face a significant dip in NRI quota revenue unless the shortfall is bridged in further counselling.BFUHS has directed all NRI quota aspirants to submit an embassy certificate issued by the Indian Diplomatic Mission concerned abroad, confirming that the parent under whose NRI status the seat is claimed holds a valid passport, has resided abroad for more than 182 days in the last financial year, and holds NRI status for a specified period. The certificate, valid for only six months, must explicitly state it is being issued for NRI quota admission in India.The directive comes amid growing scrutiny of alleged malpractices in quota admissions, including dubious NRI sponsorships. Officials warned candidates failing to produce a valid, properly attested certificate will be rejected during verification.