Chennai: The Central government’s decision to conduct National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Neet) twice a year has faced strong opposition from Tamil Nadu as the state government and opposition parties opposed the decision saying ‘six-month time period is short and it would ‘create confusion’.
Union HRD minister Prakash Javadekar on Saturday announced that the Neet and IIT-JEE would be conducted online and twice a year by the new agency called National Testing Agency (NTA).
Speaking to reporters at Coimbatore, school education minister K.A. Sengottayan said the state government’s stand was Neet should be conducted only once in a year. “The state government is yet to receive the official communication regarding the decision. We will take the issue to the notice of Chief Minister Edappadi K.Palaniswami and also raise it with Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said.
“Students cannot appear for Neet twice in a year as the six-month period is short,” he reasoned. Meanwhile, the opposition leader and DMK working president M.K. Stalin accused the Central government of ‘creating confusion’ over Neet and shattering the medical education dreams of rural students.
He further said medical aspirants from rural areas may not have computer knowledge and also wondered how the central government did not consider it before deciding to conduct medical entrance test online.
“The proposal to hold Neet online is a conspiracy to make medical education remain out of reach of rural students,” he said urging the union government to withdraw the decision and also to get the Presidential nod for two Neet bills passed by Tamil Nadu Assembly exempting the students of the state from the common medical entrance test.
CPI state secretary R. Mutharasan also condemned the decision to conduct Neet exam twice a year saying the multiple exams and different question papers will only lead to irregularities and discrimination.
He also said the making Neet online will affect the rural students. Educationist Prince Gajendrababu said conducting the Neet twice a year will only serve the commercial interest of coaching centres and the newly formed National Testing Agency (NTA). “The central government should get President’s assent to the Tamil Nadu bills seeking exemption from common medical entrance test.”
