NEET in Tamil Nadu: More applicants register this year than in pre-COVID times. Here are the numbers 

With 1,42,286 applicants, NEET registrations from Tamil Nadu this year have breached the pre-COVID-19 figure of 1.4 lakh (2019), according to NEET registration data. Compared to 2021, there has been a 20 per cent rise in the number of TN applicants this year. 

The uptick in applications assumes significance in the backdrop of the demand by the DMK government to scrap NEET in TN. Experts are divided over the reasons behind the rise in applications. While some attributed it to pent-up demand and the pandemic, a few others feel that students aspiring to study medicine have no other option than NEET.

“Owing to COVID-19, many couldn’t apply for NEET in the last two years. The pent-up demand may be one of the reasons why there is a rise in applications,” said D Nedunchezhiyan, an educational consultant.

Academician L Jawahar Nesan, however, feels that medical aspirants have no other way but attend NEET. “It’s true that NEET put medical education out of bounds for many, especially those from the marginalised sections. Nonetheless, those aspiring to study medicine can’t avoid NEET,” he said.

The state government is opposed to NEET, but students would continue to attend the test until it brought in an alternative to ensure seats for the students in TN’s medical colleges, he said.

Experts also opined that amid all the politics related to NEET, the real sufferers are government school students, who can’t afford NEET coaching. 

“Instead of playing politics over boycotting NEET, the state government should prepare government school students for NEET,” said former vice-chancellor of Anna university, E Balagurusamy.

“The government should provide financial help to government school students from rural areas to apply for NEET as they can’t afford the exam fees,” he said.

In addition, the government should open more exam centres in TN so that TN students can attend the exam in the state itself, added Nedunchezhiyan.

Neet sets a record
NEET-UG 2022, for the first time, breached the 18-lakh registration mark and recorded an increase of 2.57 lakh aspirants this year when compared to 2021. TN stands third after Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh in the number of applications. After Hindi, those taking the test in Gujarati are the second highest at nearly 50,000 aspirants, followed by Bengali with over 42,000 aspirants and Tamil with over 31,800 aspirants. Here's some more data:

1,42,286  applications in 2022
1,12,889 applications in 2021 
1,21,617 applications in 2020