NEET Exam Scam: Is NTA playing with the lives of the young aspirants?

KAKALI DAS

The story of alleged massive corruption in medical college entrance examinations isn’t receiving mainstream media coverage.

Across the country, aspiring students aiming for undergraduate medical or dental colleges must undergo the NEET examination.

Coinciding with the general election results, the NEET examination results for undergraduates were released on June 4th. Lakhs of students across the country are alleging cheating, paper leaks, and serious issues with the results, calling for the entire exam to be conducted again.

NEET Exam Scam: Is NTA playing with the lives of the young aspirants?

The major issues include the fact that 67 students scored full marks of 720, which appears highly improbable. Additionally, in comparison to last year where only two students achieved full marks, this significant increase raises suspicions.

This has significant ramifications. Many top colleges have very high cut-offs, and all of these 67 students who’ve scored full marks become All India Rank 1. For example, AIIMS Delhi, the top college in the country, had only 48 seats in the General Category last year. With 67 toppers, those seats are already taken. Notably, 8 of these 67 students are from Jhajjar in Haryana, and 6 of them had consecutive roll numbers, indicating they were sitting one behind the other during the exam.

These issues have raised questions about potential paper leaks. News18 Haryana reported that students in Jhajjar complained their examination papers were taken away and replaced with new ones during the exam. This casts a significant shadow and raises serious questions about what transpired in Haryana.

The third problem is the mathematically impossible scores. The marking system awards 4 marks for each correct answer and deducts 1 mark for each wrong answer. However, some students have scored 718 or 719, which are mathematically impossible under this system.

Furthermore, the date of the results being announced was unexpectedly brought forward by 10 days, with no explanation provided for why it was announced on July 4th instead of the initially scheduled date of June 14th.

One theory suggests that the announcement was strategically timed to coincide with the general elections, possibly to overshadow it and the ensuing chaos. Unfortunately, it appears this may have unfolded as planned.

Another problem concerns not just the results but also numerous complaints about paper leaks during the examination. In Bihar, 13 people were arrested, including 4 candidates and their relatives who had paid money to access the question paper before the exam. Patna police confirmed that around 20 candidates had received the papers in advance.

It was further discovered that middlemen were charging between ₹30 lakhs and ₹50 lakhs to leak the examination paper. Some people took this issue to the Supreme Court, but the Court did not stay the examination results.

The National Testing Agency (NTA), responsible for conducting these examinations, operates under the central government’s Education Ministry. The NTA’s response to these issues has been inadequate. On Twitter, they explained that the 67 toppers resulted from an error in one Chemistry question, for which anyone who attempted it received 5 marks. However, this explanation is not satisfactory.

Regarding the mathematically impossible scores, the NTA claimed that they awarded grace marks due to timing issues for some students. Allegedly, some students received their question papers late, leading to this discrepancy.

As for the paper leak allegations, the NTA has firmly denied any involvement or occurrence of paper leaks. However, their response has been lacking in transparency and accountability. They have not conducted a press conference nor provided satisfactory answers to the questions raised by the students. The future prospects and careers of these students are heavily dependent on the integrity of this particular examination.

NEET has been plagued by issues for several years now. It’s important to remember that NEET was initially introduced to address various problems in the medical college entrance system. Before NEET, different states conducted different examinations, leading to a lack of uniformity and requiring students to clear multiple entrance levels to secure admission. NEET aimed to streamline this process by introducing a single nationwide examination.

NEET was designed to establish a minimum academic standard for medical colleges and to combat corruption in the admissions process. Before NEET, there were instances of medical colleges selling seats to individuals with lower academic qualifications but significant financial resources.

Additionally, the National Testing Agency (NTA) aimed to alleviate the burden on students by consolidating multiple examinations into one. However, despite these intentions, problems have persisted since its inception.

NEET is based on the CBSE curriculum, which poses challenges for students across the country who study under state syllabi. This discrepancy in curriculum alignment can make it difficult for state syllabus students to excel in the examination.

In 2017, a young girl from a Tamil medium school who had achieved top marks in her 12th standard examination failed the NEET examination. Tragically, she was one of many students who took their own lives due to the pressure of this exam.

NEET is conducted in 11 languages, but there have been significant issues with translation, repeatedly highlighted by the Tamil Nadu government. In the 2018 examination alone, around 49-50 errors were reported in the questions.

Due to the challenges posed by this particular exam, there’s a notable surge in the promotion of the Kota system, which revolves around competitive coaching. However, this coaching is often exorbitantly priced, with fees reaching up to ₹5 lakh in Kota-style coaching centres, rendering it inaccessible for students from less affluent backgrounds.

Moreover, it has been observed that NEET poses disadvantages for students hailing from rural areas and marginalized castes. For instance, in Tamil Nadu, the proportion of students from rural backgrounds entering medical colleges decreased from 62% to 48%.

Lastly, there’s a question of federalism arising because education falls under the jurisdiction of the states, yet this specific exam is administered by the central government. Consequently, many people from various states feel their concerns regarding these issues are not adequately addressed.

The most pressing concern here is the loss of lives. Competitive examinations, particularly in places like Kota, have tragically led to numerous fatalities. Students invest their all to succeed, but when they don’t, they often feel as though their lives have come to an end.

India holds the unfortunate distinction of having the highest number of student suicides linked to these examinations. For instance, on June 4th, 18-year-old Bagisha Tiwari, an aspiring NEET UG candidate, tragically took her own life in Kota after not achieving the desired marks.

This marks the 10th incident of competitive examination-related suicides in Kota since January of this year. Last year, there were 26 such tragedies, all within Kota alone, not accounting for the entire country. This pattern indicates a grave flaw within the competitive examination system, with concerns amplified by the apparent lack of seriousness from those overseeing these exams at the NTA. Given that young lives are at stake, the stakes are undeniably too high to ignore.

NEET is favouring the affluent, privileging those with access and resources. However, it fails to address the crucial issue of ensuring education is more accessible for all.

The fundamental issue with medical entrance exams is the scarcity of colleges. This scarcity makes it exceedingly challenging to secure a medical seat in our country. When was the last time a new AIIMS was established? When did we last enhance the quality of education in these institutions?

The number of aspirants and students aiming to become doctors continues to rise, increasing the scarcity of available seats. This issue becomes significant because those who fail to secure admission are often made to feel as though their entire lives hinge on this single entrance examination. The reforms in place lack inclusivity and fail to heed the voices of the students.

The NTA lacks accountability, evident in its absence from press conferences and its failure to provide satisfactory answers. Moreover, it seems neither the central government nor the education ministry is adequately responding to these concerns.

The students’ lives are at risk, and if the NTA continues to neglect these serious concerns, perhaps it’s time to turn to the courts once more to compel them to prioritize the safety of our students.

08-06-2024

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