Explained | Why Tamil Nadu has brought in a Bill for exemption from NEET?

The development came a day after a 19-year old medical aspirant, Dhanush, belonging to a village near Salem died by suicide hours before he was to appear for the NEET for a third time, fearing the outcome of the test. (Illustration: Moneycontrol)

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin on September 13 introduced a Bill in the assembly seeking exemption for the state from the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission to medical courses.

With the Bill, the government wants Tamil Nadu students to be kept out of the centralised exam and admission to medical courses to be based on Class 12 marks to “ensure social justice”.

The development came a day after 19-year old Dhanush, hailing from a village near Salem, died by suicide hours before he was to sit the NEET for the third time.

Also read | Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin tables Bill against NEET in assembly as student’s suicide sparks political row

The death triggered a blame game. The opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) held the Stalin government responsible and the state government pointed the finger at the Centre.

The issue is not new for Tamil Nadu, where NEET has been a sensitive subject. Several students from economically backward sections have allegedly died by suicide over the years after failing to clear the highly competitive test.

Most political parties in the state are against NEET.

Rewind

A notification for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) was issued on December 21, 2010. The idea was to have a common entrance test instead of multiple exams, which was time-consuming and expensive for students. NEET was initially proposed to take place in 2012. Following the Medical Council of India (MCI), several states, including Tamil Nadu, opposed NEET.

NEET was held for the first time on May 5, 2013, for both undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses.

On July 18, 2013, the Supreme Court quashed NEET, saying MCI couldn’t conduct a unified examination and thrust it on governments.

On April 11, 2016, a bigger five-judge bench of the court recalled the earlier verdict and allowed the Centre and the MCI to conduct the test until it decided afresh on its validity.

Though Tamil Nadu was opposed to NEET from the beginning, the death by suicide of Shanmugam Anitha, a 17-year-old Dalit medical aspirant and daughter of daily-wage labour, pushed the issue centre stage. Anitha secured 1,176/1,200 in her state board exams but could not clear NEET.

Over the year, at least 14 students have died by suicide due to NEET, say reports.

Class 12 marks, not NEET

In 2017, the AIADMK government tried to get Tamil Nadu exempted from the exams through an ordinance but didn’t get the President’s nod.

Ahead of the 2020 assembly polls, the DMK promised a law to do away with the exam.

On September 13, Stalin introduced a Bill in the assembly to do away with NEET. The state favours admission to medical courses based on Class 12 marks.

As soon as the House convened, Leader of Opposition K Palaniswami raised the issue of Dhanush’s death and targeted the government.

Palaniswami said though the DMK had promised to “cancel” NEET, it was not done. Led by the former chief minister, opposition MLAs, who came to the House wearing black badges, staged a walkout.

In reply to the Opposition’s attack, Stalin said NEET was conducted for the first time in Tamil Nadu when Palaniswami was the chief minister and it was not held even when late J Jayalalithaa was at the helm. He said students died on Palaniswami’s watch.

While introducing the bill, Stalin sought everyone’s support for social justice.

What does the Bill say?

The Bill seeks to provide admission to undergraduate courses in medicine, dentistry, Indian medicine, and homeopathy based on marks obtained in the qualifying examination, which is Class 12.

Referring to recommendations of a high-level committee, it says the government has decided to enact a law to dispense with the requirement of NEET for admission to UG medical degree courses. Admission to these courses will be done based on marks obtained in the qualifying examination, through "normalisation methods" to ensure "social justice, uphold equality and equal opportunity, protect all vulnerable student communities from being discriminated and bring them to the mainstream of medical and dental education and in turn to ensure a robust public health care across the state particularly the rural areas."