Tamil Nadu Assembly on Monday, September 13 passed the Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill against the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) for the students of the state. The AIADMK party was first to support the bill, and other political parties such as Paattali Makkal Katchi (PMK), Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) among others voted in the favour of the bill in the Assembly. However, BJP was the only party that opposed the Bill and staged a walkout.
The TN Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday morning tabled the Bill against NEET in the Assembly which also sought permanent exemption from the Union government’s medical entrance exam for the students studying in Tamil Nadu.
The CM on June 5 this year ordered to form a panel headed by retired judge AK Rajan. The panel comprising of educationalists’ and officials from state education department in the following months studied in the impact of NEET among students of government schools in Tamil Nadu and its implications on the students of economically weaker backgrounds.
The CM on September 13 tabled the bill according to the report submitted by the panel.
According to the statement of objects and reasons in the Bill, it said that the panel upon studying the impact of NEET has concluded that if NEET continues for a few more years, the health system of Tamil Nadu will be very badly affected. “There may not be enough doctors to employ in Primary Health Centers (PHC) and Government Hospitals. Due to this, the rural and urban poor may not be able to join medical courses, "the statement read.
The statement of objects and reasons in the Bill further said that the Tamil Nadu government is aiming to provide admission to undergraduate medical degree courses not through NEET, but on the basis of the marks obtained in the qualifying examination, through normalisation methods. This will be done “in order to ensure social justice, uphold equality and equal opportunity, protect all vulnerable student communities from being discriminated against,” the government has said. This will also enable bringing such students to the mainstream of medical and dental education, and in turn to ensure a robust public health care in the state, the government added.