TN, five states pause PG medical admission Delay In Releasing Scores

TN, five states pause PG medical admission Delay In Releasing Scores

Pushpa.Narayan@timesofindia.com  05.10.2024

Chennai : At least six states including Tamil Nadu have put post-graduate medical admissions on hold. This is because the National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences, which conducted NEET PG on Aug 11 and declared results on Aug 23, is yet to release individual scores of students. The NEET PG 2024 was held on Aug 11 in two batches. The NBE, an autonomous body under the Union ministry of health and family welfare, normalised scores of candidates and declared percentile and ranks of students. “We have written to NBE seeking students' scores. Without scores, it will be difficult for us to conduct counselling, particularly for in-service candidates,” said director of medical education Dr J Sangumani. 

The state offers up to 30 marks as incentive to in-service candidates working in hilly regions and difficult terrains. Officials tried reverse calculations using percentile scores to calculate marks; however, they found it was not reliable. “We need students’ scores; else we cannot add incentive marks. We need the normalised scores,” he said. 

Some candidates have approached Supreme Court, seeking transparency in NEET-PG results. “We are expecting to start counselling based on the verdict,” officials in the directorate said. At Centre, the medical counselling committee under DGHS started the NEET PG counselling registration process for round 1 but is yet to release the information bulletin that details the process, including the schedule. However, officials from NBE said they have discussed the issue in detail with National Medical Commission.

 “The normalisation process has been conducted. It is a very complicated process, based on which percentile and scores were arrived at. We will not be able to declare scores. Percentile and ranks are enough for admissions. Ranks show the order of merit,” the official from New Delhi said. NMC officials said they have already announced the new guidelines for admissions. The post graduate medical education regulations-2023 do not permit states to offer incentives for inservice candidates. “Instead, they must create a quota within the in-service quota to incentivise candidates from rural, hilly, or difficult terrains,” a senior official said.

 “Doing this will ensure merit in NEET is not compromised,” he said. While it is yet to be ascertained whether it would benefit or affect candidates in rural areas, government doctors’ associations say NMC must not dictate terms on how admission should be conducted for state quota seats. “These matters were settled in court. It is unfair to bring it up again and change rules now. Many candidates have been working in hilly and difficult terrains expecting incentives. Seats in some specialities are so small that you can’t give quotas,” he said.