NEET Data from Tamil Nadu

What is the issue?

• A data from Tamil Nadu government on NEET pass percentages recently became available through the Madras High Court.
• While the NEET puts the poor at a disadvantage, the focus must be on quality of school education.

What are the highlight findings?

• A total of 3,081 candidates got admitted in MBBS course in 23 government medical colleges in Tamil Nadu in 2019.
• As many as 1,040 of those candidates cleared NEET in the first attempt.
• A majority of 2,041 cleared it either in the second or third attempt.
• Of the total, only 48 candidates had not attended any coaching centre.
• Only 1.6 % of all students who joined the government medical colleges had managed to get a seat without coaching.
• Significantly, even in private medical colleges, only a marginally higher percentage (3.2) had got through without coaching classes.
• A significant percentage of students in both government (66.2) and private colleges (64.4) had to take multiple attempts at NEET to get a seat.

What does the data imply?

• The data shows a clear link between coaching classes and securing a medical seat.
• As observed by the Court, the data on medical admissions proves NEET to be anti-poor.
• The costs of coaching classes are huge, running into lakhs of rupees.
• It clearly puts medical education out of the reach of the poorer sections as well as students from rural areas.

What should the response be?

• With the poor being at disadvantageous position, there are calls to cancel the NEET.
• The fundamental question, however, is the quality of education being imparted to students, in urban and rural areas.
• Ensuring that quality education is imparted at schools by well-trained teachers would obviate the need for coaching outside of classes.
• The need now is for the States to put in place a series of steps that would make learning meaningful, and fun for children.
• In the interim, it should provide free NEET coaching classes to help disadvantaged students make that leap.

Source: The Hindu