West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi advocating for the scrapping of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and reinstating joint entrance examinations conducted by individual states. Banerjee’s letter was penned in response to the ongoing controversy surrounding the 2024 NEET exams, which has been marred by allegations of paper leaks and bribery. The Chief Minister has argued that these irregularities jeopardize the careers and aspirations of millions of students seeking admission to medical courses, ultimately compromising the quality of medical education and healthcare services.
Banerjee has drawn a comparison between the pre-2017 system, where states conducted their own entrance exams, and the current centralized system. She believes that the decentralized system functioned more smoothly and relatively free of corruption, aligning with the spirit of India’s federal structure. In contrast, Banerjee contends that the present system has allowed corrupt practices to thrive, enabling the wealthy to extract benefits from medical education.
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee (Via Mamata Banerjee/Twitter)
The Chief Minister has also emphasized that the older system was better attuned to regional curricula and educational standards, allowing her government to spend more than Rs. 50 lakh per doctor on education and internships. This, she argues, is a significant advantage over the current system, which she believes is unfair to force upon her state. Banerjee has stressed that the freedom to select medical students through joint entrance examinations would be a more suitable approach, allowing her government to maintain control over the selection process and ensure that it is more in line with the needs and preferences of her state.
Banerjee’s letter highlights the concerns and criticisms surrounding the centralized NEET exam system, and her advocacy for reinstating joint entrance examinations is rooted in her commitment to preserving the autonomy of individual states and ensuring that medical education is tailored to meet the specific needs of each region. The controversy surrounding the 2024 NEET exams has sparked a heated debate about the role of centralization in medical education, and Banerjee’s letter has brought attention to the potential limitations and drawbacks of the current system.
