NDA constituent PMK wants NEET to be scrapped

Chennai, Aug 10 (IANS) Tamil Nadu unit Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president and former Union Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss on Saturday demanded scrapping the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) examination for Post Graduate admission. Notably, PMK is a constituent of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and had contested the 2024 Lok Sabha as a part of the BJP-led alliance.In a statement on Saturday, Ramadoss, who himself is a medical doctor, said that a student from Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu was allocated an examination centre in Jammu and Kashmir.”As the NEET-PG is to be held on Sunday, a student from Dharmapuri headed to Jammu and Kashmir to write the exam. It is condemnable that the exam centre for a student who belongs to the south has been allocated in the northern most part of the country,” the former Union Minister said.Ramadoss further said that the female PG aspirant had already said that in June, an examination centre was allocated in Jammu and Kashmir, but the exam was postponed.The PMK leader mentioned that she had spent a huge amount of money.Ramadoss said that the National Testing Agency which is conducting the NEET has assured the students that it would allocate one of the four centres which the students prefer.”How can the testing agency conduct the exams fairly if it can not allocate exam centres without mistakes?” he questioned.The former Union Minister also said that several complaints have already been raised in the NEET and NEET-PG exams including “leakage of question papers, misconduct, poor allocation of examination centres and other irregularities”.The PMK leader said that under these circumstances, it was better to scrap the NEET examination.Anbumani Ramadoss was the Union Minister of Health and Family Welfare in former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh-led Cabinet from 2004 to 2009.–IANSaal/pgh