NEET PG: FORDA representatives meet Union Health Minister JP Nadda

The representatives of the Federation of Resident Doctors Association (FORDA) met Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Saturday to discuss key issues in medical education, including the NEET PG postponement.

"We congratulated him on his second term at the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. The Minister assured timely resolution and new exam dates, promising a fair and transparent process. He also wished everyone a Happy Doctor's Day and emphasised his office's dedication to resident doctors' welfare," FORDA said in a statement.

The Vice Chairman of NITI Aayog, V K Paul, was also present at the meeting.

The NEET (UG) 2024 Examination was conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on May 5, 2024, at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad, with over 23 lakh candidates appearing for the examination. An unprecedented 67 candidates achieved a perfect score of 720 out of 720 marks, which led to widespread protests in the country.

For the NEET-UG and UGC-NET exams, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on June 23 registered a criminal case over the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the examination by the NTA and formed special teams to probe the matter.

Amid the ongoing row over the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET), Union Education Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday launched a fierce attack on the Congress party and claimed, "Unko apni rajnitik roti sekni hai" (They want to indulge in politics).

"Congress does not want discussion, and they are running away from it. They only want chaos, confusion, and want to create obstacles in the entire functioning of the institutional mechanism... The President herself has addressed the issue that Congress wants to debate, admitting the challenges and shortcomings in the process and that we have to look into them. On behalf of the government, I have clearly said that we are ready for any discussion, but Congress doesn't want to address the students' issue, Dharmendra Pradhan said.

"Unko apni rajnitik roti sekni hai (They want to indulge in politics)", Pradhan added.