NEET put off by two years

HYDERABAD: Much to the relief of students aspiring to become doctors, the central government has agreed, in principle, to postpone the introduction of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admissions to medical colleges by two years.The official orders to this effect are likely to be issued in a day or two.According to official sources, Union health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad confirmed the decision to chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy over phone on Friday.The chief minister had urged the Centre to exempt Andhra Pradesh from NEET for at least two years in view of the various difficulties the students of the state would have to face if NEET were to take effect from the next academic year.“The Union minister agreed in principle to postpone the examination by two years. However, it is unclear whether only students from Andhra Pradesh are exempted or the government has decided to postpone the examination all over the country. A clear picture will emerge in a couple of days after official orders are released,” said sources in the chief minister’s office.The NEET was proposed as a single national-level entrance examination for admission to all medical colleges in the country.The central government’s announcement over implementation of NEET from next academic year sent shock waves causing much anxiety to students, parents and academicians as the state syllabus is different from the central syllabus.If implemented from next academic year, students from the state are likely to be affected severely as the NEET examination will be based on the central syllabus.Considering the concerns of students, the chief minister took up the issue with the Union health minister seeking time for revamping the state syllabus so that students from Andhra Pradesh can compete with CBSE students on an equal footing.He requested the union government to postpone the examination to make required amendments to certain educational Acts and also revise the curricula of school and Intermediate education on a par with the central syllabus.