india

Updated: Jun 06, 2019 00:08 IST

Tamil Nadu’s performance in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) improved sharply over last year’s, but none of its 59,785 candidates who qualified scored a rank in the top 50 in the country. As compared to 2018, where 39.56% of the students who appeared passed the test, this time around, 48.57% students qualified.

The nationwide entrance exam for Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) and Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS) courses in approved colleges has been at the centre of much debate in the state, with both the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and All India Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam using it as a poll issue in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. While the DMK promised to abolish the NEET, the AIADMK promised to ask for a temporary exemption, if not fight to scrap it all together.

With two students from Tamil Nadu committing suicide over NEET results, the DMK, which won 23 of 38 seats (its allies won another 14), promised to take up the issue in the upcoming Parliament session on June 17.

Expressing shock over the suicides of two students, both girls, DMK president MK Stalin blamed both the Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre and the ruling AIADMK in the state.

“In its second innings, the Modi government remains a mute spectator to the NEET ‘suicides’ in Tamil Nadu with arrogance. While the BJP at the Centre has utter disregard for these suicides, the AIADMK government here has not taken any step to pursue the unanimous assembly resolution seeking exemption for the state from NEET, which has destroyed the medical dreams of our students,” he said.

In 2017, the suicide of a Dalit aspirant from Kuzhumur village near Ariyalur sparked off massive anti-NEET protests across the state, forcing the AIADMK government to pass a unanimous resolution seeking exemption for Tamil Nadu from NEET.

Since NEET overrides all other methods of medical admission, including exams by the state government, it is seen as a challenge to federal powers of the states, as education, is otherwise a subject in the concurrent list.

Between its introduction in 2013 and 2016, J. Jayalalithaa had written to the Centre expressing her objection to making the exam mandatory. Wednesday’s results have reignited the debate.

While a 17-year-old Other Backward Class candidate from Thiruppur district failed the test, another 17-year-old from Thanjavur immolated herself for not scoring enough marks, though she had qualified in the test.

Tamil Nadu has 24 government medical colleges — the maximum in the country — and seven private medical colleges. Together with the Deemed Universities which also run medical colleges, the total number comes to 45. “The pass percentage (of NEET) is a smokescreen. The question is whether they will be able to get admission,” said Dr G Ravindranath, General Secretary, Doctors Association for Social Equality.

The BJP and ally Puthiya Thamizhagam, a dalit party, continue to be supporters of NEET.

Former Anna University Vice Chancellor E Balagurusamy said the problem was not with the test but with the educational system in the state.

“NEET is necessary to streamline medical admissions.That students from Tamil Nadu are not able to qualify is because the education system has to be standardised and made relevant to contemporary times. The suicides are indeed tragic, but they are due to the lack of proper counselling, right from parents to teachers,” he said.

From the state, Sruthi K, who secured 685 marks out of 720, and secured a rank of 57, was 10th among the top 20 girl students, while Karvanna Prabhu KK, who scored 572 marks, was 5th in the physically challenged category.