AP Private Medical Colleges Managements Associations seeks clarity after NEET ordinance

AP Private Medical Colleges Managements Associations has spoken about an existing ambiguity in private common entrance tests (CETs) after the NEET ordinance. It has said that while the stand of the state common medical admissions test is now clear, we can till now only interpret that the same applies to entrance test conducted by private institutions as well. It may be recalled that the Supreme Court in its earlier order has made the private medical admission tests void.

A source in the Association has implied that the private college and universities management will obviously seek to interpret the ordinance in their favor. However, since the content of it has not been made public there is ambiguity over the matter.

"The Supreme Court has delivered a judgement directing the government to take up medical admissions only through the Neet from this academic year while prohibiting private colleges from the purview of admissions through their own CETS. Now the government issued an ordinance to keep the SC judgement in abeyance for a year which also obviously means permitting the private medical colleges to go ahead with their CETS for this year", the source maintained while refusing to reveal his identity to TOI. "We are waiting for the ordinance to come out to go ahead with our own CETs", he added.

Medical Council of India (MCI) former member Dr. C.L. Venkata Rao in his implication on the matter defers the perception of the association on the ordinance that it is only for the government CETs at the state level. It says that it is for admission in both private and state level medical colleges. Venkata Rao in addition implied that the process of counseling and admissions should be done on priority so that next session can begin in August this year.

It may be noted that the fear of private medical colleges and varsities are not unfounded with many voices being raised against the ordinance by the Centre. Punjab medical council and Delhi government have earlier raised their concern about deferring the NEET, as it will allow private medical colleges to force students to pay high capitation fee and, in one way, exploit the situation.

Dr. Gangadhar, a city-based medical practitioner and an activist, also implied that the government should provide more clarity, so that there is no ambiguity in the scope of implementation of the ordinance. The decision of SC on prohibition of private CET’s was due to lack of transparency. In addition, the B-category seats in private medical colleges should only be filled through the government CET. This will take care of the factor of making private medical education affordable.

When the government has allowed private medical colleges to collect Rs 11.50 lakh per year as fee from students under b-category seats, a good number of students with socially and economically backward backgrounds could not take to medicine and the seats falling vacant because of this reason were being sold for a price ranging from Rs 1.5 to Rs 2cr by private colleges, he alleged in his statement to TOI.