Daya Sagar
Some news has been shared in the media with the reference of Union Minister Arun Jaitley that GOI may consider bringing some ordinance on NEET issue in view of suggestions received from some states. Union health Minister J. P. Nadda has been quoted as having said in an interview to Tribune on 17th May, “We are in the middle of consultations….States have genuine concerns which we have to address. We are trying to figure out how best to do that and ensure students’ interest. We will take a decision in two days…. Our government is committed to the concept of NEET-UG. We went into review of the previous Supreme Court judgment that had quashed NEET. We have given our stand to the court and the court has taken a view. But issues have now cropped up. These involve the urge of states to seek parity in language and syllabus for students who will take the central test….. But we have already implemented NEET- I and NEET-II will also be held”. However, J.P.Nadda is said to have refrained from commenting on whether the government would bring an ordinance to exempt state governments from the requirement of holding NEET-UG in 2016.
Nadda has hinted that local issues brought in by states as like syllabus and language are being examined.Some people have pleaded that NEET (UG) be conducted from 2017 onwards since some states have already spent money in conducting local CETs. The three parameters mentioned here above do not hold good to logic and instead appear more to have been pushed in by the managements of the private colleges with their influence in the political circles as well as the by ‘effluent’ class that hopes to manage admission for their wards with money/ contact power. May be those who have already made some commitments/are settlements are pressing for deferring NEET by one year
1. (a) The issue of ongoing examinations or to be conducted CETs does not have much relevance. Some exams have been conducted even after the 11th April 2016 opinion of the Court. Had the States / managements been truthful to the common man they would have looked at the broader advantage of cost savings and larger number of seats becoming available to the applicants through the single exam NEET proposed as back in Dec 2010.
(b). More so with the NEET-II scheduled for July 24 more time will be available to those who have not appeared in any test so far, those who have appeared in NEET phase-I and feel they have not performed well and even those who have appeared in some other test can appear in NEET phase- II July 24 and advantage to contest for much more seats.
Will not those who may have to lose the fee paid for one or two tests that might have been conducted in haste by some CET local bodies get through NEET-II bigger opportunity to compete for much more number of institutions with payment of single examination fee on all India basis in addition to local colleges ?
Can some financial loss suffered by some organisations and applicants overtake the ultimate advantage that would be there for the benefit of the individual applicants?
It is worthwhile mentioning here that in states like J&K the students of Jammu region get only two months to prepare after 10+2 exam for CET conducted by J&K BOPEE held in May where as those from Kashmir region get more than five months to prepare. So, keeping this in view some justice will be done to students from Jammu region at least this year since they will get more time to prepare for 24 July NEET. So who is at disadvantage?
More so the local students of a particular State will be competing for the colleges located in their state as per local admission rules on the basis of State specific NEET merit list hence there is nothing to worry as regards the other apprehensions about local syllabus and language are being expressed since earlier also the local students from CBSE and State boards were competing for local colleges on the basis of the same CET. The competition for ‘local colleges’ will be among the same students only whether they are from State Boards or CBSE on the basis of the NEET merit list drawn for the concerned State, hence where is the question of syllabus and opportunity ?
Syllabus and language: These parameters were there earlier also and will stay there even if there is no NEET. Those Students who had to compete for seats in States other than their own State and those who had to compete for seats in the All India PMT conducted by CBSE were facing and will face similar competition even if NEET is deferred by one year, then where lies the logic for raising the “syllabus and language” issue ? Are these parameters going to change after 12 months, how? Here too the locals from a state have to compete with in the state on the basis of a state specific NEET merit list. To quote more over even when in J&K the official language is Urdu, the CET by J&K BOPEE is conducted in English.
Hope the ministry / GOI does not fall to the pressures being generated by the anti common man elements and some political leadership of states like J&K who are simply opposing NEET to project that J&K is a “Different Indian State”. They should be asked that in case J&K really has a ‘Special Status’ they claim ( although GOI has said in a written reply in Parliament on 11 Mar 2015 that J&K has no special status in Constitution of India ), is their ‘special status’ for the benefit of the common subject of J&K or it is for inflicting financial and opportunity damages on the ‘Permanent Residents of J&K” ?
Yes the states that have law / rules to admit on the basis of X+2 Board exam merit do have some logic to demand reconsideration for their state since there if the private institutions too go on that basis the common man interest is served as regards local colleges and local people/ local rules.
(Daya Sagar is a Sr Journalist & Social Activist can be reached at dayasagr45@yahoo.com)