The National Eligibility cum Entrance Test Postgraduation (NEET-PG) 2022 has just concluded. After much debate and discussion all over the country about whether or not the exam should be postponed, the exam was conducted on the scheduled date, May 21 in 256 centres across the country. More than two lakh students had registered for the exam, and will be vying for a little over 30,000 seats across programmes.
The three-and-a-half-hour exam began at 9.00 am and concluded at 12.30 pm. The New Indian Express reported that at a centre in Noida, almost 30 students were denied entry after they went out to get a printout of their Medical Registration Certificate. This meant that they reached the exam centre late by five minutes. According to the reporter on-site, among the distraught students seeking help was one candidate who said this was her third attempt at the exam.
On the other hand, the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) which had met with the Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya just a couple of days before the exam to demand a postponement has issued another letter stating that they are in constant touch with the Ministry of Health and Family Affairs, and have put forward their request for an additional attempt for all aspirants. "We demand from the government that after considering all subjects sensitively, students should be given one more opportunity and counselling for the year 2022 should be done only after the second chance examination," said the letter.
In Tamil Nadu, DMK MLA Dr TRB Rajaa had a bone to pick regarding the inclusion of instructions in the Hindi language in the NEET PG 2022 hall ticket. The MLA questioned why Hindi was "inserted" despite the fact that the NEET PG exam is conducted in English only. He also inquired if other regional languages will also be included.
In Assam, where floods have ravaged several districts, causing all examinations to be cancelled, students were requesting the Health Minister to postpone the exam in the state, or at least in the Silchar district which is the worst hit. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India had also postponed the Chartered Accountants examination in Silchar, which had been scheduled for May 19 and 20.
Those students who spent weeks before the exam demanding a postponement, including the FAIMA (Federation of All India Medical Association) had proposed that they will be demanding the resignation of the Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya after the exam for his handling of the matter. Earlier, the Supreme Court had dismissed petitions from the students to postpone the exam stating that a delay would cause "chaos and confusion" and would impact healthcare services in the country.
