Stalin steps up attack on Centre over NEET-PG, NET cancellation

The cancellation of the NEET-PG and the UGC-NET were not one-off events but the final nails in the coffin of an incompetent and broken system of centralised selection, said Tamil Nadu chief minister MK Stalin on Sunday.

In a post on X, Stalin said: “The cancellation of NEET-PG by NBE, following the cancellation of UGC-NET, has thrown thousands of our doctors into deep despair.”

“Let us not forget the fact that these happenings are not one-off events but the final nails in the coffin of an incompetent and broken system of centralised selection. As this scam unravels, let us plan for a better future and join our hands for building a fair and equitable selection process for professional courses,” he said.

He called for ensuring the primacy of school education and making it the base for careers, for restoring the rights of states to determine their selection process for professional courses. “Most importantly, for reinstalling hope and faith in the minds of our students and their families,” he said.

Earlier this month when nationwide concerns grew over the results of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET)— UG results, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government released its report by the retired justice A K Rajan-led committee in English and all major Indian languages for it to be accessible that the exam is anti-poor.

“DMK was the first to foresee the hazards of NEET and undertook a large-scale campaign against it,” Stalin had said on June 9. After the DMK came to power in 2021, they constituted a high-level committee headed by retired justice Rajan to study the impact of the NEET-based admission process. Previously, the committee’s report, based on data analysis and inputs from students, parents, and the public, was shared with various state governments by DMK leaders. The report had concluded that NEET is anti-poor and goes against the principles of social justice.

Based on the recommendations in the report, a Bill seeking exemption from NEET was unanimously passed by the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly. It is now awaiting Presidential assent, after an inordinate delay from the Tamil Nadu Governor who had kept it pending.

The committee’s report published in July 2021 showed that the average of government school students enrolled in MBBS courses went from 14.44% in the pre-NEET period to a negligible 1.7% in 2020- 21 post-NEET.

The report revealed a trend where post-NEET, the student size fell by 18.5% and 14.1% in government-aided schools, concurring that they would have migrated to the CBSE to have an edge in the exam.

The report criticised the single window exam system for the entire country stating that it promotes coaching rather than learning, which puts repeaters in an advantageous position.