How NEET UG fiasco could impact future doctors, classrooms and medical education itself

The Supreme Court on July 23, in its final hearing on the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test - Undergraduate (NEET-UG) paper leaks and malpractice case pronounced the judgement that there will be no re-NEET in the absence of widespread data to show that the results of the NEET-UG are vitiated entirely and that there was a systemic breach in its sanctity.

Soon after the judgement, Union Education Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan took to social media platform X to announce that it was a case of “truth alone triumph”. He said that the landmark verdict upholds the interest of the students and slammed opponents for allegedly trying to gain political points by stoking “civil unrest and anarchy”.

However, the news is not that rosy for a few aspirants and student communities. They feel traumatised and disillusioned after fighting for justice and losing the battle over the course of the last two months in the confirmed paper leak case. But this we know already.

What's more? They feel they have been robbed of the right to a fair and free education.

Sitting in the same classes as perhaps those who have gained a seat via unfair means, what would be the situation? What would a classroom look like? But even this would be looking at the situation with a narrow lens.

The consequences can be more far-reaching that go beyond the exam and classroom participation — what happens when these students enter the medical field?

These questions haunt those who have burned the midnight oil and bagged the much coveted medical seat.

Take, for example, Raunak Singh, an aspirant who qualified for the test this year and was actively involved in the justice-seeking process.

She says, “I was a part of this journey since the very beginning. We expect that justice will be delivered and the culprits will be punished. What came out of it is entirely the opposite. In this case, we’re the ones who are paying the price while the frauds will be celebrating.”

Raunak was expecting a good medical college with a decent score, but because of the compromised exam, she has doubts about her career and there are lakhs of students like her who worked hard for the entrance.

Talking about the possible fraud in getting into college, the medical aspirant added, “Students whose parents have paid money to get into colleges will eventually fail. What will happen is they will gain seats in top colleges that a few deserving could have gotten. In the future, they won't make good doctors and we'll have a crisis on our hands.”

She questioned the test conducting body National Testing Agency's (NTA) credibility when it comes to conducting exams in the future and slammed it for not sticking by its own statements. “They claimed that there were no paper leaks and the process was transparent. They tried their best to cover it up,” the future doctor alleges.

Raunak complained that her experience of the examination process at the exam centre was bad. She says the invigilators behaved badly with examinees and the management was of substandard quality, even after the students paid a good amount of money.

Another fallback from the NEET UG row is how the medical profession might have been maligned, to an extent beyond repair.

Shreiidha Gupata, another aspirant shared her story saying how she and her entire family revered the medical profession before the fiasco and what they think about it now.

“The authorities have blatantly ridiculed the medical education in India. One can easily barter an MBBS degree with money. It feels like everything around us is saleable; even professional degrees are no exception to this. The hard work and zeal of the students have been degraded abominably,” shares Shreiidha, criticising the system in the present-day scenario.

Predicting the possible quality of medical education and classroom participation in future after the compromised test, she adds, “The meritorious and the hardworking skilful students would definitely perform impeccably. Medicine is a long journey, and swindlers find it hard to survive here.”

“Things become concerning when these 'quacks' (a fraudulent person who pretends to have medical skills) selected by paper leaks turn up on the field to treat people. Expectedly, the results are disastrous. These 'quacks' will cost people their lives which will lead to a deterioration of India's health Index,” she continues.

The medical student associations in the country that voiced against the injustice done to students are also not happy with the decision.

Dr Nandita Thakkar, Joint Secretary of the Federation of All India Medical Association (FAIMA), pointing to the smear on the profession which is the direct result of the paper leak said, “The NEET controversy has undoubtedly shaken trust in the medical admission process, potentially causing disillusionment among aspiring doctors. However, the deep-rooted passion for medicine is likely to endure.”

She suggests addressing the issue with transparency, accountability, and stronger support systems so as to rebuild trust that would ensure that dedicated students remain motivated to pursue their dreams of becoming doctors.

When it comes to speculation of the future of students, she is very uncertain about the classroom participation of this batch as they had to go through a series of frustrating incidents, sleepless nights and much more affecting their mental health which would indirectly affect the quality of medical education acquired. This would directly affect the patient care they would be offering in the future.

Dr MD Manzur Ahmed, National President of All India Dental Students Association (AIDSA), sharing his remark, says, “I think many would feel the system is rigged and that this country doesn't value honest aspirants anymore. Parents will actively discourage kids.”

“If I was a parent, I would advise my kid against getting into the medical profession in today's age,” continues Dr Manzur, expressing his disappointment with the profession after the fiasco.