NEET 2021 exam will be held or not, TN leader asks for clarification with over a month left

Chennai: The opposition AIADMK in Tamil Nadu on Saturday asked the ruling DMK to "clarify" whether the National Entrance cum Eligibility Test (NEET) for medical admissions will be held or not this year in the state, saying the government did not give a categorical response to the matter earlier.

Leader of the Opposition and AIADMK Joint Coordinator K Palaniswami said when he raised the issue in the Assembly in the just concluded session, Chief Minister M K Stalin "did not give a direct reply when asked if NEET will be held this year and should the students prepare for it or not."

Stalin only said that the Justice A K Rajan Committee has been set up by the state government to study the impact of NEET and that further action would be taken based on its recommendations, he said.

"When I asked in the House if NEET will be held or not this year and if so, whether the students should prepare for it, the Honourable Chief Minister did not give a direct reply," Palaniswami said in a statement here.

This has led to confusion among students and parents over the status of NEET this year in Tamil Nadu, the former chief minister said, even as he pointed out that the DMK had in its election campaign ahead of the April 6 polls, which it won, assured to "cancel" NEET soon after it comes to power.

With NEET slated to be held across the country this year, the state government should "clarify" whether students in Tamil Nadu should appear for the exam or not, Palaniswami demanded.

As far as Tamil Nadu was concerned, the majority stand was that there should be no NEET for medical admissions, the LoP said, pointing out that it was brought in 2010, when the Congress-led UPA, in which the DMK was a key constituent, was in power at the Centre.

Later, the "Amma Government" had moved the Supreme Court and secured exemption for NEET in Tamil Nadu, but the apex court directed conducting the exam acorss the country based on a review petition, he recalled.

When he was chief minister, the government provided 7.5 per cent reservation in medical admissions for government school students clearing NEET and this had benefited over 400 students, Palaniswami added.

Whilst continuing to "strongly" oppose NEET, the then AIADMK government also helped government school students prepare for it by changing the syllabus accordingly and also conducting coaching classes, he said.