To inquire into structural inadequacies, a high level committee had been appointed by the TN government to assess NEET’s impact. The report of this Committee is revealing. This article delves deep into the Justice AK Rajan Report of 2021 that was recently brought back into the public domain by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister (CM), MK Stalin.

Before that the murky background of the NEET Examination.

The result of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test 2024 (NEET-2024), an exam conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), on June 4 resulted in an uproar across the length and breadth of India. NEET is the national-level uniform test for admissions to undergraduate and postgraduate medical courses across the country. NEET-UG examination for this academic year was held by NTA on May 5, and more than 24 lakh people had appeared for it. This “competitive test” is held for those seeking admission to medical, dentistry, and AYUSH programs in government and private universities throughout India, for a little above 1 lakh MBBS seats in 700 plus medical institutions.

Since the results made public last week, news of there being corrupt malpractices with respect to the conduct of the exam, paper leaks and arbitrary grant of grace marks while processing of results have emerged. Students, citizenry and leaders of opposition parties have been protesting to raise concerns about the exam regarding the alleged malpractices. It is essential to note that the issue of grace marks was that the said grace marks were awarded arbitrarily by the NTA to some 1,500 candidates for “loss of time”, while at least 44 of the toppers getting grace marks for getting an answer wrong only because a version of a Class 12 NCERT textbook had an inaccuracy. (Details can be read here, here, here and here).

Amidst the said chaos and the uproar, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin shared the report of Justice A.K. Rajan Committee, a High-Level Committee headed by the retired judge of Madras High Court in 2021, which had recommended for the scraping of the NEET exam. In a post on X (previously Twitter), Stalin stated: “After assuming power [in 2021], we formed a High-Level Committee led by Justice A K Rajan to investigate the impact of the NEET- based admission procedure. The Committee’s report, which is based on comprehensive data analysis and input from students, parents, and the general public, has been published and sent to various state governments to highlight NEET’s anti-poor and anti-social justice tendencies.”

The post can be viewed here:

DMK was the first to foresee the hazards of #NEET and undertook a large-scale campaign against it.

After coming to power, we constituted a High-Level Committee headed by Justice A.K. Rajan to study the impact of NEET-based admission process. The Committee’s report, based on… pic.twitter.com/qHZK54syEE

— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) June 9, 2024

It is pertinent to note that ever since NEET was made compulsory in 2017, the state of Tamil Nadu had opposed it. The state has maintained that NEET, which is conducted by the Union government’s Central Board of Secondary Education, goes against the interest of state board students. As per the post of CM Stalin, the said report committee is being put out by him in nine languages with the hope that this will help people understand the ills of NEET and why the same has been rejected by the state of Tamil Nadu.

Immediately after NEET’s imposition across the length and breadth of the country—never mind the fact that ‘Education’ as a subject remains in the Concurrent List of the Constitution where States have an equal stake and say — in February of 2023, the Tamil Nadu government had moved the Supreme Court challenging the constitutional validity of NEET. The TN challenge emphasised the fact that the single-window examination for admissions to medical colleges across the country violates the principle of federalism, which is part of the basic structure of Constitution. The main argument raised by the state was that NEET takes away the autonomy of states to make decisions regarding education. The petition remains pending.

Justice AK Rajan Committee Report

Members of the AK Rajan Committee: Dr. G. R. Ravindranath (General Secretary, Doctor’s Association Social Equalities), Professor L. Jawahar Nesan (Former Vice-Chancellor), Dr. J. Radhakrishnan (Principal Secretary to Government, Health and Family Welfare Department), Tmt. Kakala Usha (Principal Secretary, School Educatio), Thiru. C. Gopi Ravikumar (Secretary Law), Dr. P. Senthil Kumar (Principal Secretary/OSD, Health and Family Welfare), Dr. R. Narayana Babu (Director of Medical Education), Dr. P. Vasanthamani (Additional Director of Medical Education/Secretary, Selection Committee).

The 165-paged Rajan Committee report has found that after NEET was introduced in 2017-18, fewer students from rural areas, those studying in the Tamil medium, those from families with lower incomes, and those from Tamil Nadu state board schools, secured admission in medical colleges in the state. In the years since its implementation – after interviews with parents and students who applied and who emerge successful – the Committee found that the trends of applications and admissions in medical admission in Tamil Nadu started indicates that the NEET has caused an unprecedented havoc and setbacks for the students of varying social, economic and demographic denominations aspiring for medical studies. The same eventually prompted the Tamil Nadu Government to establish this committee in the state in 2021 to study the impact of the NEET on the admission prospects of students belonging to the state.

It is essential to note that based on the findings and suggestions of this report, in 2021 itself, the Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously passed a Bill to ban NEET, only for governor RN Ravi to withhold consent for months before returning the Bill to the Assembly for reconsideration. In February 2022, the Assembly had readopted the Bill without any amendments. The Bill was forwarded by the Governor to President Draupadi Murmu in May of 2024 after Governor Ravi had refused to give his assent, despite it being constitutionally mandated that he gives his assent if a Bill is returned to him a second time without amendments and then pass it on to the President to sign. Notably, the Bill is still pending with the President. Following the example of Tamil Nadu, the state of Karnataka is also mulling over bringing in a similar law and scrapping NEET in the state in view of the recent malpractice allegations.

Contents of the report

The 165 pages report has been divided into a total of nine chapters, which dissects and looks at the issue of NEET from the perspective of academic, socio-economic and other demographic status and health services in Tamil Nadu as well as the constitutional provisions related to education in India. Additionally, the report further deals with the flaws that exist with the concept of conduction Common Entrance Examinations. Regarding NEET, the report explores the history of NEET, the academic merits and validity associated with it and the opinions of the stakeholders.

Based on this analysis, the report then puts out certain recommendations for the Tamil Nadu government, advising them that the state government must undertake immediate steps to eliminate NEET as a qualifying criterion for admission to medical programs by following the necessary legal and legislative procedures. As per the committee, the same can be done by the state government by asserting that the term ‘University education’ in Entry 25 List III is a general provision, while ‘Regulation of Universities’ in Entry II is a special provision, and Entry 32, an exclusive state subject, cannot be ignored.

It is crucial to highlight here that the committee’s report is based on extensive data analysis as well as over 86,000 inputs received by the Committee from students, parents and the public. In the said report, the committee has shed light on the negatives of the NEET exam model by observing that it promotes “coaching” rather than “learning” relying on data to drive home the point that those who undergo coaching or repeat the exam are at an advantageous position in clearing it. In addition to this, the report also provided data supporting the contention that those social groups who were the students of Tamil medium, rural background, government schools, and parental income less than Rs. 2.5 lakh and socially depressed and disadvantaged groups like MBC, SC, and ST were highly affected by the introduction of NEET.

The report also refers to the drastic decrease in the number of Tamil-medium students getting selected for MBBS after NEET was introduced.

As per the data released by the committee, it is shown that the number of Tamil-medium students getting into government and private medical colleges has taken a huge hit after NEET came into being in the state in 2017. As provided in the report, 456 students from the Tamil medium got into MBBS in 2010-2011 when the admission was based on marks scored in plus-two exams.

Even in the year 2016, the number of Tamil-medium students who had secured admission to medical colleges 2016, a year before NEET, was 537. However, it witnessed a steep fall in 2017 when just 56 students from the Tamil-medium secured admission. Since 2017, the number of Tamil-medium students being selected to medical colleges remained low only, with only 119 Tamil-medium students got into medical colleges in 2018, followed by 71 in 2019. The report also provides that the number of Tamil-medium students securing a seat in 2020 rose only because a 7.5 per cent quota for government school students who clear NEET in medical admissions by the then AIADMK government.

A percentage wise comparison of the number of students from Tamil-medium who got into medical colleges has also been provided in the report, which showed the percentage coming down to 1.6 per cent in 2017 from 19.79 per cent in 2010. This downward trend was in contrast with the number of students from English-medium who secured admission in medical colleges, which went up to 98.41 per cent in 2017 from 80.2 per cent in 2010.

On the issue of impact of annual family income to those who were able to get admission in allotted colleges or self-financed colleges, the report showed that the students‟ Parental Income < 2.5 Lakhs diminished reasonably as opposed to those belonging to the group of > 2.5 Lakhs whose share has increased after the NEET. As per the data provided in the tables, it can be clearly seen that there existed a trend favouring the group of more than 2.5 Lakhs compared to the ones whose family income was less than 2.5 lakhs. Notably, even though there was a similar trend before and after the NEET, but the gap between their shares has widened in the post-NEET compared to the pre-NEET.

The report also provided the admission data of the students in terms of their geographical location. The table of the data showed the percentage distribution of the students, from rural and urban setup, who have secured admissions in both the Government and Self-Financing colleges. From the data provide, the panel found a 12 per cent (from 61.45 per cent to 49.91 per cent) drop in the share of rural students from pre-NEET to post-NEET. On the other hand, the urban share rose from the pre-NEET average of 46.33% to 52.86% in 2020-21 in the post-NEET period. It indicates, in both categories, compared to the pre-NEET period, the rural segment has lost its share of admission in the post-NEET that it once maximally enjoyed in the pre-NEET.

The report also dissects the data of the students in terms of their becoming First Generation Graduate (FGG) or being from Non-First Generation Graduate (Non-FGG) family. As per the data provided in the report, based on the rate of applications, the FGG’s application was reduced in the post-NEET as opposed to increased rate of applications by the Non-FGG. The data shows that in both Government and Self-Financed Colleges, the Non-FGG students secured admissions far greater than the FGG students in the post-NEET compared to the pre-NEET period. Also, within the same medium categories, the trend shows a drastic change in admissions between the pre-NEET and post-NEET periods. For instance, as is evident from the data, the overall percentage share of the FGG has reduced from 24.94% in 2016-17 to 14.46% in 2020-21 in the Government lot, while that of the Non-FGG rose to 85.54% in 2020-21 from 75.06% in 2016-17.

The data of the report indicates that in both government allotted as well as self-financed college categories, compared to the pre-NEET period, the FGG segment was the worst affected segment which lost almost 45% of its share that it enjoyed in pre-NEET to the non-FGG group in the post-NEET.

On the concern of mushrooming of coaching centres that charge exorbitant fees, the report provides that competitive exams revolve around the coaching class ecosystem, which, thus have grown around JEE and NEET in India. In reference to Tamil Nadu, the report states that branches of every key coaching institute opening shop in major cities and affluent rural areas was the result of the compulsory implementation of NEET in 2016. Providing the data on the percentage of students that took training prior to attempting the NEET exam, the report highlighted that of the students who secured admission in the year 2019-20, 99% students had received prior training before the NEET.

Connecting the issue of geographical location and income of the family with accessibility to coaching, the report highlights that rural students studying in Government Schools coming from economically weaker section find it difficult in joining the Coaching centres in the city where the fees are high and the boarding facilities are also not affordable to stay in the City to attend the coaching classes for NEET examination. Especially, poor students from rural backgrounds and those who have studied in the vernacular medium face great disadvantage, because of the trespassing coachers encroaching education. Comparatively students studying in State Board/CBSE/ICSE syllabus in the city have easy access to join coaching centres in the city where transportation facilities are available compared to the rural areas.

Gist of the findings of the report:

Following findings can be deduced from the report:

• While English-medium students had more seats even before NEET, their share increased after NEET, while Tamil-medium students’ proportion decreased.
• Between 2010-11 and 2016-17, students from rural regions received 61.5% of available places in government medical institutions. Post the introduction of NEET, the percentage of students from the rural back securing admission in medical dropped. In contrast, the proportion of students from metropolitan regions in government medical institutions increased from an average of 38.55% in the pre-NEET years to 50.09% in 2020-21.
• The report stated that NEET has been successful mainly for the repeaters (71 per cent in 2021) and those students who have gone through coaching while opining that Tamil Nadu’s robust health care system will go back to “pre-independence era“ if NEET continues as the pattern of selection in MBBS admission.
• According to the Rajan Committee, the proportion of students from higher-income households grew after NEET, while that of students from lower-income families fell. Students with parents earning less than Rs 2.5 lakh per year received an average of 41% of admissions prior to NEET, however this ratio dropped to 36% in the post-NEET years. For pupils whose parents earned more than Rs 2.5 lakh per year, these figures were 58% and 62% on average in the pre-NEET and post-NEET eras, respectively.
• According to the Committee, CBSE students gained an advantage over Tamil Nadu state board students following the NEET. The percentage of candidates from state board schools decreased from nearly 95% on average in the pre-NEET years to 64.27% in 2020-21, while applications from CBSE schools surged from an average of 3.17% pre-NEET to 32.26% in 2020-21.
• The study said that “the argument that the NEET mark, as opposed to HSC (higher secondary certificate of the state board) mark tests the standard of the student and signifies merit is a baseless argument”. It was noticed that prior to NEET, the average HSC score of students admitted to MBBS courses was 98.16%, compared to 89.05% after NEET. The committee has also specified in the report that while a comparison between the HSc and the NEET scores is like comparing orange with apple, however, the Committee has to do so in response to the arguments of the critics of HSc who argue that NEET is the best assessor of students‟ standard and abilities, because of its assessment and syllabus superiority.
• Regarding the influence of coaching institutes on admissions, the research said that 99% of students who obtained admissions in 2019-20 had training prior to NEET. The report also revealed that NEET coaching centres had become a Rs 5,750 crore industry in the state.

As provided in the report, Ranjan committee observes that “The aftermath effect of the NEET has already embarked with signs of changing profile of the Doctors between the pre-NEET and post-NEET period, creating a generation of doctors and teaching faculties from mainly the privileged communities- the affluent, the creamy, the urban genre who are well away from the grass root realities of the diverse social structure – the implication of which will be palpable in the society in years to come if not intervened at the 111 earliest. While the reasons and interventions may be multi-dimensional including academic reforms and bottom- up socio economic uplift, if the pre and post NEET scenario is considered, the aftermath effect has aggravated the divide and worsened the medical and healthcare sector in all its tributaries; like medical education, medical profession, and public healthcare system and service.”

Recommendations and conclusion of the report:

The report in its entirety highlights the need to do away with NEET. The recommendations are grounded in substantial data and aim to ensure justice, protect vulnerable communities and foster a more holistic and fairer educational environment.

1. Elimination of NEET

NEET has been criticized for creating an uneven playing field. The first and foremost recommendation is that state government should take immediate steps to eliminate NEET from being used in admissions to medical programs at all levels.

The state can do this in two ways.

First, the state government can argue that “University education” under Entry 25 List III is seen as a general provision, while “Regulation of Universities” under Entry 32 is viewed as a special provision. Entry 32 is an exclusive state subject, which means that Article 254, which deals with conflicts between state and central laws, cannot override Act 3/2007 in relation to Entry 32. Consequently, admissions to colleges affiliated with the Tamil Nadu Dr. M.G.R. Medical University should be governed by Act 3 of 2007, excluding the application of Section 14 of the NMC Act.

Second, the committee suggests that the State Government may pass a new Act, similar to Act 3/2007, to eliminate NEET at all levels of medical education. This Act, then must receive the President’s assent to ensure its validity.

2. Sole Admission Criteria Based on HSc Scores

The committee proposes that Higher Secondary (HSc) scores should become the sole criteria for admission to first-degree medical programs. To ensure fairness among students from different educational boards, normalization of scores should be implemented.

3. Addressing Socio-Economic Adversities

The committee calls for the identification of socio-economic and other demographic adversities that contribute to poor performance among disadvantaged students in their HSc examinations. Based on the degree of these adversities, a framework of “Adversity Score” should be developed to re-profile students’ scores.

4. Reforming School Education

The committee emphasizes the need to reform school education up to the HSc level. The focus should be on fostering learning rather than coaching. The entire educational process, from curriculum development to teaching methods and assessment, should be oriented towards equipping students with subject knowledge and higher-order skills such as reasoning, decision-making, and social disposition.

5. Bringing Deemed Universities Under State Purview

The final recommendation suggested by the committee is that an Act should be passed by the Tamil Nadu assembly to bring all deemed universities in the state under its jurisdiction, similar to Act 3/2007. This Act must also receive the President’s assent.

In conclusion

Justice Thiru A. K. Rajan through this report presents a critical re-evaluation of the current NEET-based medical admission process in India. The report concludes with stating that persisting with NEET will jeopardize the state’s healthcare system by potentially creating a doctor shortage in crucial Primary Health Centres and will jeopardize the availability of specialists in government hospitals. Furthermore, it is stated that NEET disproportionately disadvantages students from underprivileged backgrounds, both rural and urban, hindering their aspirations to become doctors. This trend, if left unchecked, risks a regression to a pre-independence healthcare scenario reliant on minimally trained personnel. Such a decline would significantly erode Tamil Nadu’s standing as a state with an advanced medical and healthcare system.

To avert this detrimental trajectory, the report suggests the state government to act swiftly to abolish NEET as a medical admission requirement. Implementing the recommendations outlined in the report, encompassing legislative actions and targeted educational reforms, will pave the way for a more equitable and effective system to nurture future medical professionals. These necessary steps not only safeguard the state’s healthcare infrastructure but also promote social justice by offering equal access to medical education for all students, irrespective of their socioeconomic background.

The complete report can be viewed here:

Related:

NEET 2024 Row: Supreme Court cancels grace marks, orders re-test for affected students

Students, organisations protest as allegations against NEET examinations pile up

Scrutinising the procedure for awarding compensatory marks in NEET 2024

SC asks NTA to ensure that even ‘0.001% negligence’ is investigated, while states of Bihar & Gujarat remain the epicentre of the NEET UG 2024 scandal

The post Abolish ‘discriminatory and imbalanced’ NEET exam: Justice A.K. Rajan Committee 2021 appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The UGC -NET and the NEET exam (besides several others, used to  be conducted by the CBSE until 2018, which was (and is) a National Board of Education in India for public and private schools, controlled and managed by the Union Government of India.

Question 1: If an autonomous testing agency was required at all, why was the Societies Registration Act a route chosen by the government of India? Why was an Act of Parliament (such as was done to set up UGC or AICTE) not passed, or an autonomous Council created under the Ministry of Education, like the CBSE? Was this route chosen to evade the financial scrutiny and accountability that arises from being a government institution, by virtue of being subject to the comptroller and auditor general (CAG)?

Question 2: The 95 year old CBSE had been conducting several national examinations since the 1970s and the UGC-NET since 2014. Why was the CBSE’s examination wing not expanded to take over the national testing mechanism? The CBSE has well developed protocols for confidentiality and secrecy, and even how to manage finances

Please see:

Why were these not laid down as essential for the NTA to follow? Why in setting up the NTA were there no enforceable guidelines or demands for accountability from the government about paper leaks, selection of experts as paper setters, modalities about conducting the exam, the fees that it can charge, besides accountability for breaches, wrong answer keys, delays, and the like?

Question 3: How can a SOCIETY be one whose memorandum of association is to be found nowhere? It’s because no one can join it, as only the government can decide who its members are, even as it bullies and threatens universities into buying into its ridiculous exam. As per this notification, the NTA is a body whose members are handpicked by the government but whose misconduct and failures, the government takes no responsibility for!  It’s a SOCIETY with no General Body either, and its composition is completely lopsided representation of universities. There are over a thousand universities in India and less than a hundred institutes, but the latter far outstrip the former in terms clout in the body.

The answers to these three questions are quite trivial. The fact is that the NTA is a scam no different from the Electoral Bonds, the exit polls scam, or PMCARES scams. Just as in these other malpractices, the scheme is simple—USE THE BRUTE FORCE OF THE STATE TO CREATE A SCHEME FOR RUTHLESS EXTORTION, IN WHICH A FEW PROFIT! #scrapNTA

From the Facebook profile of Ayesha Kidwai, a Professor of Linguistics at the Centre for Linguistics at Jawaharlal Nehru University, and a translator and activist.

The post NTA Ki Chronology Samjhiye! Then attempt to answer my three non-MCQ questions appeared first on SabrangIndia.

“Even if there is 0.001% negligence on the part of anyone, it should be thoroughly dealt with. All these matters ought not to be treated as adversarial litigation,” the Bench said, as per Livelaw.

The present petition has been tagged with other similar petitions that had been filed in the Supreme Court, where allegations of malpractice and paper leaks had been made.  It is essential to note that.

Background of the controversy

On June 4, 2024, the NTA released the NEET 2024 results, catching students and parents off guard due to the results being announced ten days ahead of the anticipated date. This early release coincided with the national focus on the general election results, which added to the public’s astonishment. The declaration that 67 candidates had secured a perfect score of 720/720 raised immediate concerns, as achieving such scores is exceptionally difficult given NEET’s negative marking system.

Further suspicions were fuelled by reports that many of the top scorers had consecutive roll numbers, implying they might have taken the exam at the same centre. This raised allegations of collusion and possible exam centre malpractice. The situation was further complicated by reports of candidates scoring 718/720 and 719/720—scores that are impossible under NEET’s marking scheme, sparking confusion and suspicion among stakeholders.

Legal headway made till now 

On the last day of hearing, June 13, the said matter had been brought before the Vacation Bench of the Supreme Court of India.

The Court had reviewed the pleas demanding the cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 results and objections to the awarding of grace marks. One petition was filed by Physics Wallah CEO Alakh Pandey, who argued that the NTA’s decision to award grace marks was arbitrary, supported by representations from about 20,000 students. Another petition by SIO members, Abdullah Mohammed Faiz and Dr. Shaik Roshan Mohiddin sought a recall of the NEET-UG 2024 results over alleged paper leaks and malpractices, with the court issuing a notice on this matter. It is essential to note that after allegations were raised against the grant of grace marks, the NTA and the Union Education Ministry had formed a four-member committee to review the results of the candidates awarded grace marks to compensate for the loss of time.

On the issue of grace marks: Advocate Kanu Agarwal, representing the Union Government, had stated that the panel reviewing the NEET-UG issue was of the view that the award of compensatory marks to 1563 students on the grounds of loss of time resulted in a “skewed situation” because the grace marks had to be limited only to the un-attempted questions. After examining all aspects, the committee concluded that it would be appropriate to recommend the cancellation of the scorecards of the 1563 students.

The court had scrutinised the NTA recommendations and found inconsistencies regarding the re-test clauses. Justice Mehta had emphasized the need to re-draft the clauses, noting, “You can’t declare the result of all 1563 candidates cancelled.”

The Supreme Court directed that only candidates genuinely affected by the reduced exam time should be eligible for the re-test, scheduled for June 23, 2024, with results to be declared by June 30 to avoid disrupting the counselling process starting on July 6. The Supreme Court’s order had stated that the petitioners raised concerns about the normalisation formula and the award of grace marks to 1563 candidates. Those who opt out of the re-exam will have their actual scores considered without compensatory marks. The decision to cancel the grace marks awarded to 1563 students was communicated by the Centre to the Supreme Court, with these students informed of their actual scores.

On halting the counselling process: The Supreme Court had clarified that the ongoing counselling process, which is scheduled to take place on July 6, would not be halted. Justice Nath had stated, “Counselling will go on, and we will not stop it. If the exam goes, then everything goes in totality, so nothing to fear.”

The order of the Supreme Court can be read here:

Arguments and observations made in the ongoing hearing

During the hearing on January 18, the vacation bench had clarified to Advocate Kanu Agarwal and Vardhaman Kaushik, representing the Union Government and the NTA respectively that even 0.001% negligence on the part of anyone needs to be thoroughly investigated. Justice Bhatti also highlighted that an investigation is important not only to ensure that the labour put in by students preparing for the exams but also because any candidate who becomes a doctor after playing fraud in the exam is more dangerous to the society.

“Imagine a situation where a person who has played fraud on the system, has become a doctor, he is more deleterious towards society….we all know the labour the children undergo especially for preparing for these exams.” Justice Bhatti remarked, as per LiveLaw.

Justice Bhatti also expressed that the NTA should act proactively and must admit if there is any mistake. This will re-instil the confidence of the public in the NEET examinations.

“Your stance (the NTA and Union) ought not to change the moment you enter the court, representing the Agency which is responsible for conducting the examination. You must stand firm- if there is a mistake, yes there is a mistake, this is the action we will take- at least that inspires confidence in your performance….if someone keeps just a table in front of him, find out the performance of most of the candidates, one can easily understand where it has gone wrong, how many cell phones were used…clearly we react, but in vacation we react slowly,” the Bench stated.

The case will now be heard on July 8 with the other matters. The Union Government as well as the NTA has been required to submit their response within two weeks.

The order of the Supreme Court can be read here:

Police investigations in Bihar, Gujarat

The National Eligibility Entrance Test of 2024, the largest medical admission test in India, has been in the headlines since the past few weeks. The numerous arrests, inquiries, judicial interventions, scams, protests and calls for justice in the wake of the purported paper leak have raised many fingers at the sanctity of this test as well as the negligence of the NTA. As more and more scandals related to NEET unfold, shocking and significant details have emerged from the state of Bihar and Gujarat.

Bihar:

It was from the state of Bihar that the reports of a paper leak had started surfacing. As provided by multiple media report, five minutes into the exam, the Patna police got a tip-off about a car belonging to an organised gang. The car had earlier taken 35 examinees to a playschool in Patna and leaked the paper.

As per the report of The Free Press Journal, an FIR had been registered at the Shastrinagar police station and police had recovered a scanned copy of the leaked paper sent to a young man in Danapur. The investigation by Patna police had also resulted in multiple arrests and unravelling of malpractices. The police also arrested four fake candidates in Purnia and one in Hajipur who had attempted to sit the exam on behalf of others.

As per reports, a total of 13 people belonging to Bihar have been arrested in connection with the alleged NEET-UG 2024 paper leak case. The Bihar Police have established the involvement of 35 students, 13 of whom have already come under their investigation while investigators are yet to identify the remaining 22.

According to sources, it is suspected that nine aspirants, along with four other examinees from Bihar, received the exam’s question paper and answers in a ‘safe house’ near Patna a day before it was conducted on May 5. Notably, they have already been arrested by the Economic Offences Unit (EOU).

During interrogation, the candidates had disclosed that their parents had paid more than Rs 30 lakh for every candidate to those who were facilitated question papers ahead of the exam. The EOU of Bihar Police had also recovered six post-dated cheques which were suspected to have been issued in favour of the mafia.

Gujarat:

On June 15, Gujarat Police arrested five persons, including the head of a coaching centre, in connection with alleged cheating in the medical examination in a centre in Godhra. As per the police complaint lodged in Godhra, around a dozen students, their parents and a Vadodara-based coaching centre run by a group of teachers were found to be involved in the alleged scam. The five arrested included the principal and teacher of a school in Godhra town in Gujarat’s Panchmahal district. The names of those arrested are:

1. Parshuram Roy, owner of the Roy Overseas Coaching Institute in Vadodara,
2. Vibhor Anand, an education consultant who got students admitted to Roy’s Institute,
3. Purshottam Sharma, the principal of Jai Jalaram School which was a NEET exam centre,
4. Tushar Bhatt, the deputy superintendent at the NEET centre who was a physics teacher at the school and
5. Arif Vora who worked with Bhatt

These five have been accused of trying to help 27 candidates clear the NEET-UG for a sum of ₹ 10 lakh each. As per the report of The Free Press Journal, some students had even paid over Rs 2 crore to the accused for getting their children admitted overseas.

As per Indian express, out of 27 students who had either paid in advance or agreed to pay money to Mr Roy and others, only three were able to clear the exam. Notably, the police informed the court that out of the 27 students who chose Godhra as their exam centre, 16 students hailed from Odisha, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Karnataka.

It is essential to note that the FIR against this “racket” had been filed on May 9, after the district collector received a tip-off that some persons were involved in malpractice at the Godhra School designated as a centre for NEET-UG, held on May 5. As per the details that have emerged, students had been asked to opt for the Godhra centre so that the accused could then help the candidates by filling the answers to the questions left blank. As per The Print, a nexus between a coaching institute and staff at the exam centre where the NEET was conducted is emerging. The police are now, with the help of the NTA, trying to identify all the students who benefited from this organised cheating racket.

Uproar and protest by opposition over NEET continue

On June 19, the Indian National Congress (INC) party announced a nationwide protest on June 21, 2024 against the alleged NEET Scam. The said decision came after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had bemoaned the silence of PM Modi over the scam and the allegations being raised against the conduct of the NTA.

On June 18, Gandhi had taken to X (formerly Twitter) and provided “As always, Narendra Modi is maintaining silence on the issue of playing with the future of more than 24 lakh students in the NEET exam. The arrests in Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana clearly indicate that there is systematic organised corruption in the examination and these BJP ruled states have become the epicentre of paper leaks. In our judicial document, we had guaranteed to secure the future of the youth by making a strict law against paper leaks.”

NEET परीक्षा में 24 लाख से अधिक छात्रों के भविष्य के साथ हुए खिलवाड़ पर भी नरेंद्र मोदी हमेशा की तरह मौन धारण किए हुए हैं।

बिहार, गुजरात और हरियाणा में हुई गिरफ्तारियों से साफ है कि परीक्षा में योजनाबद्ध तरीके से संगठित भ्रष्टाचार हुआ है और ये भाजपा शासित राज्य पेपर लीक का…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 18, 2024

Reacting to the arrests made in Bihar, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had also claimed that the Modi government has started “covering up the NEET scam” through Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the NTA.

“If the paper was not leaked in NEET then — why were 13 accused arrested in Bihar due to paper leak? Did the Economic Offences Unit (EOU) of Patna police not expose the payment of Rs 30 lakh-Rs 50 lakh to the education mafia and organised gangs involved in the racket in exchange for papers?” he said in a post on X.

मोदी सरकार ने शिक्षा मंत्री व NTA के द्वारा NEET घोटाले की लीपापोती चालू कर दी है।

अगर NEET में पेपर लीक नहीं हुआ तो —

1. बिहार में 13 आरोपियों को पेपर लीक के चलते गिरफ़्तार क्यों किया गया?

क्या रैकेट में शामिल शिक्षा माफिया व संगठित गिरोह को पेपर के बदले ₹30-₹50 लाख तक… pic.twitter.com/r234FgUZes

— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) June 14, 2024

Karnataka Deputy CM DK Shivakumar also attacked the union government and stated “The Karnataka government’s stand is that we are opposing it. It’s a huge scandal. I would like to congratulate Dharmendra Pradhan on his statement…It’s unfair to have a re-exam for a few students. It must be done for everyone.”

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders have been continuously protesting against the Union government and demanding an investigation on the NEET UG. The political party has been questioning the ruling party on alleged NEET paper leak since the beginning, and have amped up their protest since the hearing of the case in the Supreme Court.

NEET Exam में घोटाले के ख़िलाफ़ आज देशभर में AAP का हल्ला बोल pic.twitter.com/hwd64Gauzb

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) June 19, 2024

आज छात्र और उनके माता-पिता सड़कों पर हैं। वह मांग कर रहे हैं कि NEET के Exam को दोबारा कराया जाए, लेकिन सरकार उनकी बात नहीं सुन रही है। वह लीपापोती में लगी हुई है।

देश के शिक्षा मंत्री NEET घोटाले को मानने की तैयार नहीं हैं। वह सोच रहे हैं कि लोग कितने दिन तक आवाज़ उठायेंगे,… pic.twitter.com/clhdZbGExl

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) June 18, 2024

At a protest held at Jantar Matar, AAP leaders had stated that “NTA has betrayed the central government and the children of the country. Children’s dreams and future have been betrayed. Cases of paper leak also came to light in Bihar and Gujarat, but the central government remained silent. They kept trying to hide this fraud. The Central Government should conduct an independent investigation in this matter and it should be under the supervision of the Supreme Court. This is a question of the future of millions of children of 10th, 11th and 12th and AAP will strongly raise the voice of these children.”

#WATCH | Delhi | Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) holds protest against Union Government over NEET exam result issue, at Jantar Mantar pic.twitter.com/MbviAYlbsh

— ANI (@ANI) June 18, 2024

Related:

NEET 2024 Row: Supreme Court cancels grace marks, orders re-test for affected students

Scrutinising the procedure for awarding compensatory marks in NEET 2024

Students, organisations protest as allegations against NEET examinations pile up

NEET: An Exam only for Elites

The post SC asks NTA to ensure that even ‘0.001% negligence’ is investigated, while states of Bihar & Gujarat remain the epicentre of the NEET UG 2024 scandal appeared first on SabrangIndia.