A new report has claimed that an analysis of data done by a committee appointed by Tamil Nadu government on the impact of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) has revealed that the number of students from rural areas, economically weaker families, Tamil-medium schools, and state board affiliated schools has decreased significantly in medical college across the state after the introduction of NEET entrance exam in 2017-18.

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

According to a report by The Indian Express, the panel found that the proportion of rural students decreased to to 50.81% (post-NEET) from an average of 61.45% (pre-NEET). The students from government schools were worst affected. “On average, government school students made up 1.12% of the first-year MBBS batch in Tamil Nadu pre-NEET. The figure dropped to 0.16% post-NEET (unreserved seats). Last year, the state government introduced a 7.5% horizontal reservation for state-run school students,” said the report. 

The study conducted by panel also revealed that the share of students from English medium schools has increased from 85.12% to 98.01% in medical colleges after the introduction of NEET entrance exam.

The nine-member panel also noted that the percentage of students with an annual family income of under Rs 2.5 lakh fell from 47.42% in 2016-17 to 41.05% in 2020-21. On the other hand, the percentage of students whose annual family income was more than Rs 2.5 lakh increased from 52.11% to 58.95% during the same period. The panel also said that students from CBSE-affiliated schools benefited more than the students of Tamil Nadu government schools. 

Meanwhile, the National Testing Agency (NTA) is expected to release NEET 2021 entrance exam result soon. It is to be noted that NEET 2021 entrance exam was held in offline mode on September 12.