NEET review: Parliamentary panel recommends separate entrance exams for medical courses

A Parliamentary panel has proposed significant changes to the medical entrance examination system, including separate admission tests for MBBS, AYUSH, and Nursing courses, while reviewing the conduct of the recent NEET re-examination.

During a meeting held on July 1, members of the panel argued that relying on a single National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admissions to all three streams places an unnecessary burden on the examination process.

According to sources, they suggested introducing independent entrance tests for MBBS, AYUSH, and Nursing programs to reduce the number of candidates taking one common exam.

The National Testing Agency (NTA), however, maintained that the proposal would be difficult to implement under the current admission framework.

Officials informed the committee that NEET scores are presently the basis for admissions to all three categories, making separate examinations impractical at this stage.

The panel also urged authorities to study whether NEET could be conducted in multiple phases across different states instead of being held nationwide on a single day.

Members noted that staggering the examination could make the large-scale exercise easier to manage and reduce operational challenges.

Reviewing the recently conducted NEET re-examination, the committee expressed satisfaction with its overall execution, describing it as "secure and well-managed."

NTA officials briefed the panel on the strengthened security protocols adopted for the test, including blocking access to Telegram, tracking activity on WhatsApp channels, and modifying the question paper format to lower the possibility of leaks.

The committee further advised caution over proposals to shift NEET to a computer-based test. It said such a transition should be taken up only after adequate digital infrastructure is in place across the country and all operational requirements have been fully addressed.

Appearing before the committee were NTA Director General Abhishek Singh, Higher Education Secretary Vineet Joshi, and former ISRO Chairman K Radhakrishnan, who heads the steering committee responsible for implementing reforms in the NTA. The meeting was chaired by Congress MP Mukul Wasnik.