TN Guv returns govt bill seeking NEET exemption for state; says its against interest of rural students

Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi has returned to the state government an Assembly bill seeking exemption to the state from the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test NEET saying it went against the interests of rural and economically poor studentsThe Governor has returned the bill adopted by the state Assembly in September 2021 and the report of a High Level committee constituted by the Tamil Nadu government in this connection to the Assembly Speaker M Appavu a Raj Bhavan release saidThe Governor after detailed study of the LABill No43 of 2021 for admission to Undergraduate Medical Courses seeking exemption from NEET and the Report of the High Level Committee constituted by the State Government in this regard which is the basis for the Bill and also examining the preNEET status of social justice in medical admission especially for students coming from socially and economically poor background is of the opinion that the Bill is against interests of the students specially the rural and economically poor students of the StateHence the Honble Governor has returned the Bill to the Honble Speaker Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on February 01 2022 giving detailed reasons for its reconsideration by the House it saidThe Supreme Court in Christian Medical College Vellore Association Vs Union of India 2020 also has comprehensively examined the issue specially from the Social Justice perspective and upheld NEET as it prevents economic exploitation of poor students and is in furtherance of social justice it addedThe Governors decision comes months after Chief Minister M K Stalin met him in November and urged him to forward the bill to the President for his assent besides an allparty meeting chaired by the latter last month where it was deciding to put up a unified legal battle against the central qualification exam NEET has emotional undertones in the state in the backdrop of alleged suicides of medical aspirants either for failing to clear it or due to apprehensions over scoring low marksThe death of a Dalit girl from Ariyalur district S Anitha in 2017 by suicide over failing in NEET prompted an outrage in the state and calls for abolition of NEET have only gained steam ever since even as the previous AIADMK goverment also adopted an Assembly resolution seeking exemption for Tamil Nadu from the ambit of NEETAbolition of NEET is a poll promise of the DMK which sailed to power in May 2021 after a 10 yearstint in the opposition Barring BJP all other parties in Tamil Nadu are opposed to NEETIn September 2021 while batting for doing away with NEET the Assembly bill had said the entrance test is not a fair or equitable method of admission since it favoured the rich and elite sections of societyQuoting a high level committee led by Justice A K Rajan a retired judge of the Madras High Court the preamble in the bill had then said the panel on making a detailed study concluded that if NEET continued for a few more years the health care system of Tamil Nadu would be very badly affected and there may not be enough doctors for postings in Primary Health Centres or staterun hospitals and that the rural and urban poor may not be able to join the medical coursesMeanwhile Pattali Makkal Katchi PMK MP Anbumani Ramadoss called for an urgent sitting of the state Assembly to once again adopt a bill against NEET and send it to the GovernorDescribing Ravi returning the bill as unfortunate he said it was unacceptable that the Govenor has opined it is against the interests of rural and economically poor studentsHis decision is against social justice he said in a series of tweetsCPI State Secreatry R Mutharasan also hit out at the governors decision and said it was against the feelings of the people of the stateNEET has been inimical to the interests of the students of Tamil Nadu ever since it was introduced he said in a statementTo ensure the welfare of the students of Tamil Nadu and social justice the state government should once again send the bill to the Governor he addedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever