NEET: NHRC notice to TN govt, CBSE over 'hardships' faced by students

The Commission took suo motu cognizance of reports alleging a lot of hardship to the students, who had to travel even across the state to write the National EligibilitycumEntrance Test, organised by the Central Board of Secondary Education.

“In one such incident, a 46-year-old man from Tamil Nadu, who had to travel a long distance of 500 km along with his son who appeared for the NEET at a centre in Kerala, died due to cardiac arrest on Sunday,” the National Human Rights Commission stated.

Observing that the contents of reports, if true, raised a serious issue of violation of human rights, the National Human Rights Commission observed that the students were put through tremendous pressure due to the examination and it was the duty of the state to ensure that they were not subjected to any kind of discomfort, while they appeared for the entrance examinations.

“It appears that the state government and the Central Board of Secondary Education authorities have failed to provide examination centres to the aspirants within the state, resulting in hardship not only to the students but also their parents,” it observed.

Accordingly, the Commission has issued notices to the chairperson, Central Board of Secondary Education, and the Chief Secretary, government of Tamil Nadu, calling for a detailed report in the matter explaining as to why the students had to travel across the state to appear for the examination.

“The Commission would also like to know as to what steps are being taken by both the authorities to ensure that such incidents do not recur in future,” it said.