A Neet Coup That Failed

THE JULY 23 ORDER of the Supreme Court ruling out a re-test of the 2024 NEET-UG (National Entrance-cum-Eligibility Test) is a colossal relief for a vast majority of more than 2 million students who appeared for the exam and are in the zone of eligibility for admission to undergraduate medical courses. A re-test would have seriously delayed admissions, had a cascading impact on learning schedules, created a gap in the availability of qualified professionals, and particularly hurt students from weaker sections who have lesser access to coaching and limited family incomes that could hamper efforts to prepare for an exam all over again.

The Supreme Court acted wisely in dismissing pleas that the National Testing Agency (NTA) be asked to conduct the medical entrance exam afresh on the grounds that barring a handful of students found to have used unfair means, there is no evidence of a systemic breach in the sanctity of the examination or that leaks vitiated the entire result. The ongoing investigation of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) revealed that 155 students from centres in Hazaribagh and Patna were part of the paper leak organised by a gang comprising a crooked school principal, centre supervisors, middlemen, and a group of ‘paper solvers’. The CBI also arrested the owner of a school in Godhra who planned to fill in unanswered questions on answer sheets but apparently failed to carry out the fraud.

The centrepiece of the Supreme Court order that explains why the NEET-UG 2024 examination was not contaminated beyond redemp­tion is that the record of city and centre-wise data and a comparison of the 2022, 2023 and 2024 results does not reveal a systemic leak that compromised the sanctity of the test itself. On the directions of the Supreme Court, the Centre submitted a report prepared by the Indian Institute of Technol­ogy, Madras that carried out a data analysis of results from 4,750 centres in 571 cities. The petitioners seeking a re-test alleged bias, and though this did not carry weight with the bench headed by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, the court independently scrutinised the data just to obviate controversy. It arrived at the same conclusion as the IIT Madras analysis—there was no large-scale infirmity in the exam. The court further took note that it was possible to segregate the black sheep and held that if the CBI probe uncov­ers more tainted students, they will face action, irrespective of whether they have secured admission and begun studies.

The importance of the ruling needs to be seen in the context of the plea of the petitioners that the leak was systemic and the conduct of the examination is riddled with structural defi­ciencies. A re-test in light of the allegations would have vastly emboldened those calling for the scrapping of the national-level NEET exam altogether. Since it was implemented in 2013, NEET has faced a determined onslaught from coaching centre lobbies, certain states like Tamil Nadu and private medical col­leges seeking its rollback. Added to the list are commentators who repeatedly question the NEET scoring system, arguing students with poor scores are getting admissions due to low qualifying marks. The sugges­tion is that low eligibility marks prevent more meritorious but less well-off students from accessing costly private college seats. Yet, the fees of private colleges would not change even with higher cutoffs.

The eligibility for admission in 2024 was the 50th percentile, that is 164 marks of 720. This can be subjected to more scrutiny but is unlikely to make any significant difference to admissions to the 52,000 (56,000 seats are in government hospitals) seats in private colleges. A higher cut-off would in fact see the same set of critics accusing the government of exclusion. But such niceties escape those determined to pick facts that suit them. There is indeed one common thread that binds most of those opposed to NEET—a desire to return to the days when admissions were decentralised and private colleges, many run by politicians, earned profits through ‘capitation fees’. In those days, there were close to 20 exams for admission to medical colleges and a student needed to appear for at least half a dozen to be sure of securing a seat.

The NTA is in for an overhaul and the nitty-gritty of the exam is under review, which will hopefully lead to a more foolproof system. The paper-pen mode must go. The NTA clearly erred in trying to grant grace marks to students at cen­tres. As the Lok Sabha election is over, the education ministry is expected to make sure the examination attains the required standards of purity. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had ended illegal corporate access to official information in the oil ministry when he headed the department in 2015. He would be expected to ensure a similar diligence with regard to the examination system. Pradhan welcomed the Supreme Court ruling and said the government’s view that there was no large-scale breach of the question paper has been upheld by the apex court.

Not surprisingly, the NEET controversy played out in Parliament as well, with the opposition putting the govern­ment in the dock over the leak. The Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi attacked the government, saying the examina­tion system was fraudulent and the rich can buy their way through it. Pradhan responded, pointing out that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government had tabled several education reform Bills in 2010, including one to curb use of unfair means, early in then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s second term. The Bills were never passed. The Bills in question included a plan to set up a regulator for higher educa­tion, and though seen to be pathbreaking, ran into resistance from Congress MPs and leaders from Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. MPs from other states chimed in too. It was hardly a coincidence that these states are known for private medical colleges with many controlled by influen­tial politicians. While UPA ministers accused the Opposition of non-cooperation—it is a fact that education lobbies are ubiquitous—the reform Bills were scuttled mainly due to inhouse resistance within Congress.

Exam leaks are hard on students, many of whom fear they may be barred on grounds of age if they miss a schedule of tests. They undermine trust in the system and faith that admissions will recognise merit. NEET, which was upheld by the Supreme Court in 2017, is a big step in providing a level playing field to all students. Its results have undermined criticism from parties like the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagham (DMK) who want Tamil Nadu to be out of NEET. Students from the state have consistently improved their performance. The pass percentage for 2024 is 58.47 per cent against 54.45 per cent last year. In the 2024 test, the number of applicants appearing in Tamil went up by 6,000 and the pass percentage of students from government schools is steadily improving too. The Supreme Court order prevents a return to influence peddling and opaque admissions that disadvantage genuine students.

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