Draft bill seeks to bypass NEET in Tamil Nadu

Moving the ‘TN Admission to MBBS and BDS courses Bill 2017’ and the ‘TN Admission to PG course in Medicine and Dentistry Bill 2017’, the minister said the bill was deemed necessary as the Central government amended the Indian Medical Council Act 1956 and the Dentists Act 1948 to conduct a uniform entrance examination for medical and dental educational institutions at the UG and PG levels. 

Stating that admission to these courses in the state were made on the basis of marks in the higher secondary school examinations as per the TN Admission in Professional Educational Institutions Act 2000, the minister said most students appearing for such a uniform entrance test in Tamil Nadu were from rural areas where they lacked facilities for coaching classes. 

The minister said the content for the common entrance exam was based on CBSE syllabus which differed from that prescribed by the TN Board for Higher Secondary Education. It was in this connection that the state government decided to take a policy decision “to continue the present procedure for admission to MBBS and BDS courses,” he said.