The Chief Minister has written a letter to the Prime Minister requesting the cancellation of the NEET exam.
Tamil Nadu: Chief Minister Stalin has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to withdraw the National Paramedical and Health Services Commission’s notification making NEET mandatory for paramedical courses.
In his letter to Prime Minister Modi, Chief Minister Stalin stated, “The National Commission for Allied Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) has made it mandatory to appear for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to two degree programs – Bachelor of Physiotherapy (B.PT) and Bachelor of Occupational Therapy (B.OT) – from the upcoming academic year.”
This hasty and arbitrary decision should be immediately withdrawn as it will have several adverse consequences. Tamil Nadu has consistently opposed the NEET examination for admission to undergraduate medical courses (MBBS). There is also a fear that NEET will be made mandatory for other paramedical courses as well.
Unfortunately, Tamil Nadu’s fears have come true today. The latest information from the Union Health Ministry clearly indicates that NEET is being recommended for these two courses, which is the first step in a larger plan to make NEET mandatory for all paramedical courses in the future.
This initiative, undertaken without proper consultation with the state governments, which are constitutionally responsible for both health and education, is completely unacceptable to the state government.
As we have already pointed out, the introduction of NEET has forced 1.4 lakh students to compete for 12,000 MBBS seats, pay exorbitant fees for coaching classes, and appear for the NEET exam, leading to unnecessary expenditure, stress, and anxiety for their families.
It has also rendered the performance in school examinations meaningless. Extending this flawed system to paramedical courses will only worsen the situation. The number of seats available for paramedical courses in Tamil Nadu is more than 50,000.
The lakhs of students aspiring to gain admission to these courses come from much lower socio-economic backgrounds compared to those who aspire to pursue MBBS. This is a great injustice that forces poor families to spend money on NEET preparation.
It is impractical to mandate participation in the NEET exam as a qualification criterion.
Globally, educational qualifications are determined by passing an exam or achieving good grades, and making participation in an entrance exam mandatory is not justified. It appears this is designed solely to expand the NEET exam across the country. He further stated that this will force millions to take NEET coaching, and ultimately, NEET coaching centers will profit immensely at the expense of poor families. Although the NEET score has been set as the eligibility criterion for MBBS admissions, the cut-off has been gradually lowered to almost zero, rendering any discussion about the quality of students completely meaningless.
In this context, it is essential that the admission process for paramedical courses remains under the purview of the state government and that the NEET exam is excluded from this admission process. Therefore, this order should be reconsidered.
He said, “The National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions (NCAHP) should be immediately directed to abandon this course of action. The seriousness of this matter should also be considered.”
