NEET Won't Apply To States For Now

NEET, the common entrance test for medical courses, will not apply to states for now. After much deliberation, President Pranab Mukherjee today signed off on the Centre's decision to put out an executive order to bypass a Supreme Court ruling that one exam would be held for students across India.

A team of Health Ministry officials waited anxiously this morning at the presidential palace Rashtrapati Bhavan, waiting to answer possible queries from Mr Mukherjee and hoping that he would sign off on the file before leaving for China.

The President was seen to be extra-cautious after the fiasco in Uttarakhand, where his decision to approve central rule was overturned by a court.

Health Minister JP Nadda cancelled a trip to Geneva to meet the President after he asked for clarifications on the need to bring an ordinance.

The executive order is aimed at bypassing the Supreme Court's ruling last month that NEET, or the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, will be held across India. The court had taken into account allegations of corruption in multiple medical entrance tests held by states and private colleges.

State governments strongly objected and asked the court to review its order, saying such an exam would place regional language students at a disadvantage. When the court rejected the request, the Centre decided to bring an ordinance.

A section in the Congress criticised Mr Mukherjee and alleged that he had accepted the Centre's recommendation in a hurry.