J Jayalalithaa, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, has come out strongly against the move by the Medical Council of India to introduce the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to the undergraduate and postgraduate medical and dental courses in the country. In a strongly worded letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, excerpts of which were released to the media on Thursday, the Chief Minister said any move by the Centre to introduce a common entrance test would infringe upon the State’s rights and admission policies to medical institutions in Tamil Nadu.
Jayalalithaa said the Supreme Court in a landmark judgment in July 2013 had declared the notification by the MCI introducing the NEET for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in medical and dental colleges ultra vires of the Constitution and quashed the same. “Students aspiring for medical and dental seats at the undergraduate and postgraduate level had to go through the agony of an uncertain selection process which militated against their interest and the interests of the State of Tamil Nadu. The majority judgement has rightly upheld all the valid objections raised by Tamil Nadu. This judgement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court was also widely welcomed,” pointed out the CM.
She said the Union Government, instead of abiding by the verdict of the Apex Court, filed a review petition against the judgment. Though she wrote to the then Prime Minister in July 2013 against the review petition, it was not heeded by the Government of the day, said Jayalalithaa.
The Chief Minister said the NEET and common entrance examinations are designed to favour students belonging to the urban elite while those from the rural areas are on a disadvantage.” My Government has taken the consistent stand that rural students and students from poorer socio-economic backgrounds were unable to compete with urban elite students in such common entrance examinations, which are designed to favour the urban elite. The rural students would have been put to a disadvantage because they lack the resources to enroll in training institutions and access materials available to urban students. Consequently, a large number of socially and economically backward meritorious rural students have benefited by the decision to abolish the Common Entrance Test,” Jayalalithaa said in the letter.
According to the Chief Minister, Tamil Nadu gives preference to those who serve in rural areas for postgraduate courses. Those who complete such courses from Government colleges work in State-run hospitals for a stipulated period fulfilling the manpower needs. “The introduction of NEET would nullify the implementation of these policy initiatives and socio-economic objectives of the State,” she pointed out.
As on date there are approximately 70,000 seats for MBBS and 21,000 seats for MD across the country. Every State Government conducts its own entrance test. In addition to this, the private medical college managements, deemed universities and management of minority institutions hold their own written tests. The Medical Council of India’s move will see the abolition of all these tests and introduction of a common admission test applicable to all over the country. Sources in MCI said they lost the case in Supreme Court only on technical grounds.