CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has sought the support of his counterparts in 12 states, mostly ruled by opposition parties, in opposing the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and putting up a united effort to restore the primacy of state governments in administering the education sector, as envisaged in the Constitution.
The letter of Stalin dated October 1 has been addressed to the Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Jharkhand, Kerala, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Telangana, West Bengal and Goa.
A team of DMK MPs will be handing over the translated report of the Justice AK Rajan Committee on the impact of NEET on medical admissions in Tamil Nadu and make a briefing on the efforts taken by the Tamil Nadu government so far in this regard besides seeking the support of the respective states, an official release here said.
Stalin said the committee headed by Justice AK Rajan was appointed for studying whether the NEET based admission process has affected socially backward students in the past few years and to suggest alternative admission procedures which would benefit all students. The committee was also asked to look into the feasibility of implementing such alternatives and the legal steps to be undertaken to implement such fair and equitable methods. Based on the recommendation of the committee, the Tamil Nadu State Assembly recently passed an Act called Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Act, 2021.
“Our considered position has always been that the move by the Union government to introduce NEET goes against the spirit of federalism and violates the constitutional balance of power by curbing the rights of state governments to decide on the method of admission in the medical institutions founded, established and run by them. In this regard, we consider that state governments need to assert their constitutional right and position in deciding the method of admission to their higher educational institutions," the Chief Minister said.
Stalin requested his counterparts in the 12 states to go through the documents and extend support in this regard to ensure that students hailing from rural areas and marginalised sections of society are not put to hardship in obtaining admissions to higher educational institutions.