Maharashtra govt alleges injustice to state students in NEET exam results; seeks its cancellation
Mumbai (PTI): The Maharashtra government has sought immediate cancellation of the last month's NEET exam, alleging that its results have caused injustice to the students from the state.
Several aspirants of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET-UG), conducted on May 5 at 4,750 centres in 571 cities, have earlier alleged that inflation of marks has led to a record 67 candidates bagging the top rank, including six from the same exam centre in Haryana. The results of the exam were declared on June 4.
The National Testing Agency (NTA), however, denied any irregularities and said the changes made in the NCERT textbooks and grace marks for losing time at the examination centres are some of the reasons behind the students scoring higher marks.
Talking about the issue, Maharashtra Medical Education Minister Hasan Mushrif on Friday said, "The NEET exams were probably conducted after taking money. The results are such that no student of Maharashtra will get admission for the MBBS course in government or private college in the state."
He said parents of many students have approached him seeking to address the issue.
"This (the results) has caused injustice to Maharashtra and it must be immediately cancelled. We are going to tell NMC (National Medical Council) about it," he said.
Mushrif said the government was even contemplating approaching the court over the issue.
NEET-UG is the qualifying entrance exam for admission to Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS), Bachelor of Dental Surgery (BDS), Bachelor of Ayurveda, Medicine and Surgery (BAMS), Bachelor of Siddha Medicine and Surgery (BSMS), Bachelor of Unani Medicine and Surgery (BUMS), and Bachelor of Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery (BHMS) and BSc (H) Nursing courses.
There are more than 80,000 MBBS seats in over 540 medical colleges in the country.
The Congress has earlier targeted the government over the issue.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday called for resolution of students' "legitimate complaints" through an investigation,
"First the NEET exam paper was leaked and now the students allege that there has been a scam in its results as well. Serious questions are being raised on 6 students of the same centre getting 720 out of 720 marks and many kinds of irregularities are coming to the fore."
There are reports of many children committing suicide across the country after the results were announced, Gandhi said and asked, "Why is the government ignoring the voice of lakhs of students? Students want answers to legitimate questions related to the rigging in the NEET exam results."
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin also opposed the NEET saying the entrance test goes against social justice and federalism.
"Issues such as question paper leaks, clustering of toppers at specific centres, and award of marks -- which are mathematically impossible -- under the guise of grace marks highlight the pitfalls of the current union government's centralisation. These events emphasise the need to restore the pre-eminence of state governments' and school education system's role in determining criteria for professional course selection, he said." he said on X.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
