Minister of State for Home Ajay Mishra informed the Lok Sabha on Tuesday, July 19, that it had been over 20 days since the Union government sought clarifications from the Government of Tamil Nadu on its NEET Bill.
Mishra said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, and Ministry of AYUSH furnished their 'comments' on the bill and had respectively shared them with the Tamil Nadu government on June 21 and 27 for clarifications. He was responding to a query from S Venkatesan, Member of Parliament from Madurai constituency (CPM), about the status of the bill.
Venkatesan had asked if the bill that exempts Tamil Nadu students from the NEET had been forwarded to the Centre for approval, about its progress, and when it might be approved. To this, Ajay Mishra stated, the Tamil Nadu Admission to Undergraduate Medical Degree Courses Bill, 2021, reserved by the State Governor for consideration and assent of the President, was received in the Home Ministry on May 2, 2022.
As per practice, bills reserved by the Governors of States are processed in the Home Ministry in consultation with the nodal Central Ministries, and departments. Hence, Ajay Mishra further added that the consultation process in such cases takes time, and therefore no fixed time could be prescribed for such approval.
The State passed the NEET exemption Bill for the second time in February as the first time the Governor had returned it to the State last year. The bill was first passed in September 2021 seeking an exemption for the State from the NEET.
