Multiple all-India examinations have been cancelled over the past week. (Representational)
Stepping up its attack on the Centre after it cancelled the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET-PG) for postgraduate medical courses, the Congress has said the Narendra Modi government must be held accountable for students to get justice.
NEET-PG is an examination doctors must clear to pursue postgraduate programmes. It is conducted by National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences. This exam was initially scheduled for March 3. Then it was announced that it would be held on July 7. The date was revised again to June 23 i.e. today. But hours ahead of the examination, the Centre announced that it would be postponed.
In a statement at 10 pm yesterday, the government said, "Taking into consideration, the recent incidents of allegations regarding the integrity of certain competitive examinations, Ministry of Health has decided to undertake a thorough assessment of the robustness of processes of NEET-PG Entrance Examination, conducted by National Board of Examination for medical students. It has accordingly been decided, as a precautionary measure to postpone the NEET-PG Entrance Examination, scheduled to be held tomorrow i.e. 23rd June, 2024. Fresh date of this examination will be notified at the earliest."
The statement added that the Health Ministry sincerely regrets the inconvenience caused to the students and that the decision has been taken in their best interests.
This was the third big examination cancelled in a week. Earlier, the National Testing Agency cancelled the UGC-NET a day before the exam, citing inputs that the integrity of the exam may have been compromised. The CSIR-UGC NET was also postponed. This comes amid nationwide protests against irregularities in the NEET UG exam, due to which 24 lakh students are staring at uncertainty.
Hitting out at the Centre over the NEET row, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that the "buck stops at the doorstep of the top echelons of the Modi Govt". "Shuffling the bureaucrats is no solution to the endemic problem in the Education system rotted by the BJP. NTA was projected to be an autonomous body, but in reality was made to serve the devious interests of the BJP/RSS. For students to get Justice, Modi Govt must be held accountable," he said.
"Now, NEET-PG Exam has been postponed. 4 examinations have been either cancelled/postponed in the past 10 days. Paper Leaks, Corruption, Irregularities and Education Mafia has infiltrated our Education system. This belated whitewashing exercise is of NO consequence as countless youth continue to suffer!" he added.
The Centre has handed over to the CBI the investigation into the NEET UG irregularities. "Certain cases of alleged irregularities/cheating/impersonation/malpractices have been reported," the Centre has said in a statement. Among other steps, the National Testing Agency's Director General Subodh Singh has been sacked and a seven-member panel set up for exam reforms.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the education system of the country has been destroyed under the Narendra Modi government. The cancellation of NEET PG, he said, is another example. "In the BJP's rule, students have to fight the government instead of focusing on their studies," he said, adding that the government is helpless before paper leak racket and education mafia. "Narendra Modi's incompetent government is the biggest danger for the future of students. We have to save the country's future," he said.
The Sharad-Pawar-led faction of NCP said the government was playing with the lives of aspirants. "Due to their inability to do their job, the government is playing with the lives and future of children," said NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) national spokesperson Clyde Crasto.
Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale flagged that the decision to postpone NEET PG was announced late at night, hours before the exam. "Education Minister @dpradhanbjp is trying to save his skin by merely sacking the head of NTA. This entire fiasco is a result of Pradhan's massive incompetence & mismanagement I've the last few years," the Rajya Sabha MP said.
"Why is @dpradhanbjp continuing as the Education Minister even after these back-to-back failures & scams? What level of arrogance is this where he refuses to resign even after destroying the lives of lakhs of students?"