1. New Bill to replace NEET
The Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill, 2021 sought to provide admission to these courses on the basis of the marks obtained in the qualifying examination [Class XII marks in Tamil Nadu] through “normalisation methods”, as was done before 2017. Justice A.K. Rajan committee had told the government in its report that NEET had undermined diverse social representation in MBBS education. The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday passed a Bill seeking to ‘dispense’ with the requirement for candidates to qualify in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to undergraduate medical courses in the State.
2. Justice A K Rajan Committee on NEET
The Tamil Nadu government’s steps towards abolishing NEET gained momentum with the high-level committee headed by retired Judge AK Rajan submitting its 165-page report and recommendations on the impact of NEET in medical admissions in Tamil Nadu, to Chief Minister MK Stalin. The committee submitted its report a day after the Madras High Court upheld the constitution of the committee in a petition filed by the BJP State general secretary. Most of the people who have given their views to the committee, that the NEET is not needed for Tamil Nadu on various counts.
3. Absence of representation of Rural Students
The admission of rural students before the introduction of NEET and its status after the introduction of NEET, etc. are part of the report. The government may also initiate other legal steps to abolish NEET based on this report. Abolishing NEET is one of the electoral promises of the DMK. Based on the report of the AK Rajan Committee, the DMK government move a resolution in the State Assembly seeking exemption for NEET in Tamil Nadu and send it to the Union Government as well as to the President.
4. Competency of State to Legislate
The Bill, moved by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, contended that admission to medical courses was traceable to entry 25 of List III, Schedule VII of the Constitution, and the State was “competent to regulate” the same for the underprivileged social groups. After the UG course, students from the affluent class do not serve in rural areas, and often pursue postgraduate courses abroad, it said, adding that the number of serving doctors in the State was declining. It is also termed ‘spurious’ the suggestion that NEET improved the standard of medical education.
5. Aim of the Bill
“The standard of medical education is maintained during the UG course by following the syllabus and curriculum prescribed by the National Medical Commission and through exams conducted by the university before awarding the degree. Students who are not able to pass the university exams are not awarded degrees. Therefore, it is not during the admission stage that the standard of medical education is maintained,” the Bill argued.
The Bill said its aim was to ensure social justice, uphold equality and equal opportunity, protect all vulnerable student communities from discrimination and bring them into the mainstream of medical and dental education and, in turn, ensure robust public healthcare across Tamil Nadu, particularly in the rural areas.
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