Bengaluru: Till last year MBBS and MD seats in private medical colleges used to get booked a year in advance and there were allegations of seat blocking, cheating and at later stages of admission, even cheque bounce cases were reported.
But this year with National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) being made mandatory for all MBBS and MD admissions, advance bookings have totally stopped in private medical colleges in the state.
According to the several academic advisors, who were playing the role of seat facilitators over decades, with NEET being made mandatory parents and students are afraid to book seats in advance.
“Last year hundreds of parents lost MBBS seats in private medical colleges as their wards were not able to clear the NEET examination, which was made mandatory at last minute. This led to several disputes as colleges failed to repay the advance amount on time. This year parents are more cautious,” said a seat agent, who wished to be anonymous.
“This year there will not be any admission tests even for medical PG, diploma and PG diploma seats without clearing NEET. This is also adding to the woes of medical colleges, as well as agents who generally work on commission basis,” he explained.
Difficult to crack
According to the principal of a private medical college in the state, following the implementation of NEET, seat mafia has lost its plot. “Generally they were charging 10 per cent commission. It is impossible to run a medical college just by collecting an annual fee of Rs 5.75 lakh from each student,” he said.
Medical college owners used to make a profit of at least Rs 5 crore a year, but due to NEET they expect to make only few lakhs. The proposal of exit examination is expected to hit the medical education field further, he added.
“Last year’s NEET examination was very tough. Most students who had paid advance money for MBBS seats under management quota were not able to crack the exam. Those who could clear the exams were not willing to pay huge amounts. So it is a difficult phase for all,” he said.
