Use Vande Bharat flights to bring back NEET aspirants: Supreme Court

The apex court was hearing a plea filed against the Kerala High Court June 30 order which dismissed the plea for setting up overseas examination centres or postponement of the exams until pandemic situation is under control. “If the Joint Entrance Exam can be held online then you should consider NEET also to be held in an online form from next year,” the court said. The bench headed by Justice Nageswara Rao said, “I don’t know what happens there, but here in India, those who write NEET, don’t go for engineering. Because the streams in school are different.”

The decision comes in the backdrop of the novel coronavirus pandemic and amid the requests for postponement in conducting NEET, JEE and other competitive examinations during the virus outbreak. Earlier, the Medical Council of India also submitted an affidavit saying the matter of overseas examination centres for NEET doesn’t deserve the indulgence of the top court in view of the fact that the Indian government has permitted travel to and from other countries, through Vande Bharat Mission. The top court was hearing a plea by students and their parents living abroad for setting up overseas centres for the exam. Like JEE, which has exam centres abroad, NEET should also have centres as the students cannot come to India to write the examinations, the petitioners had argued.

“Please communicate to the concerned ministries that these people may be allowed to come back for the exams,” the court told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was representing the Centre. Mehta said it can be done “subject to quarantine requirements and establishing that they are coming for exam purpose.” The court said it cannot pass directions on relaxing quarantine conditions, but asked the States to consider the issue.