Tamil Nadu assembly takes a very strong stand against NEET.

The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has passed a resolution to abolish NEET, the national medical entrance examination to get into undergraduate medical courses.

The resolution was moved by state Health Minister K G Arunraj and was supported by many leading parties in the Assembly. The ruling TVK and its allies like the Congress also supported the move. DMK and AIADMK also supported the resolution, while the lone BJP MLA walked out of the House.

The resolution puts new focus on Tamil Nadu’s longstanding resistance to the national medical entrance test.

Why does Tamil Nadu want NEET to be abolished?

The Tamil Nadu government has also claimed that NEET brings more difficulties for students from rural, economically poorer and socially disadvantaged backgrounds.

Health Minister K G Arunraj said NEET has shifted students' attention away from their regular school curriculum and towards entrance-exam coaching.

As the state government has also mentioned, the increasing number of coaching centres has also created a financial burden as many families cannot afford expensive coaching programmes.

And so the government argues that students with better coaching and funds available to them might have the advantage in terms of their school education and are more likely to be on the receiving end of the services and benefits as compared to students who are dependent on their school education.

Coaching Centres Are Now a Major Concern

One of the key arguments in the resolution is the increasing dependence on private coaching.

Students are spending large amounts of money and time preparing specifically for NEET instead of focusing on their Class 11 and Class 12 studies, Tamil Nadu has said.

As for students from rural areas and families with little money available to them, the state government argues that this will create an uneven process.

The resolution also highlights concerns about students studying in Tamil-medium schools and whether they are provided the same preparation opportunities as students in well-resourced institutions.

Tamil Nadu Proposes Class 12 Marks-Based Admission

Instead of NEET, the Tamil Nadu government has proposed to use Class 12 examination marks as the basis for medical admissions in the state.

This is not a new view. Previous Tamil Nadu governments have also supported a similar approach and argued that students' performance over their school years should have greater importance in deciding admission to medical courses.

The state had already approved legislation to exempt medical students from NEET during undergraduate admissions. But the Bill passed in 2021 still has not received presidential approval.

Paper Leak and Exam Irregularities Cited

The resolution also deals with related controversies of NEET and examination irregularities.

Tamil Nadu has cited question paper leaks and other alleged irregularities as reasons for questioning the credibility of a single national entrance examination.

The government has said that when a genuine examination is affected by significant irregularities, students who have prepared honestly face significant stress and uncertainty.

The resolution also recommends the cancellation and re-conduct of NEET-UG after irregularities and says that such developments have negatively impacted students' confidence in the examination system.

Mental health problems are also raised.

The Tamil Nadu government has also highlighted the emotional pressure associated with highly competitive medical entrance examinations.

The resolution refers to cases of student suicides linked to exam-related stress and argues that the existing system can put enormous pressure on young students.

The state believes medical admission should be structured in a manner that provides fair opportunities but does not become so dependent on a single examination too much.

How did NEET become India’s common medical entrance exam?

Before NEET became the nationwide medical entrance test, medical admissions were conducted through several different examinations.

The All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT) was also used for a portion of the medical seats and other states also conducted their own entrance tests for other seats. Some big institutions also had separate entrance tests.

NEET was created in an effort to create one national entrance examination for medical admissions.

After years of legal and administrative reform, NEET became mandatory nationwide. By 2020, the top medical institutions were also under the common examination system.

Supporters of NEET say that a single entrance test sets out a common standard and can therefore make the admission process more uniform.

But criticism is coming from some state governments that the system gives students who can afford specialised coaching an advantage and reduces the role in state-level education systems.

The Larger Political Debate Over NEET

Tamil Nadu has been one of the strongest opponents of NEET for many years. DMK and AIADMK governments have been worried about the examination and the effect on the students.

The debate has also spread to other states. Political parties in different parts of India have raised questions about the examination system, particularly after controversies surrounding NEET-UG.

The main question is if India should continue with one common medical entrance examination or allow states greater control over medical admissions.

What else will happen next?

The Tamil Nadu Assembly resolution is a political and policy demand for the Centre to reconsider the NEET framework.

For NEET to be abolished across the nation, the laws on medical education and admission (e.g., the National Medical Commission Act) would need to be modified.

For now, NEET remains the national entrance examination for undergraduate medical admissions.

But Tamil Nadu’s latest resolution has brought the matter back into the national spotlight and the state says medical education should be available to students regardless of economic status, location or access to expensive coaching.