NIOS, Open School Students Eligible to Apply For NEET 2018, MCI Reverses Order

On August 9, 2017, The Medical Council of India issued a letter ordering open school candidates to not appear for NEET. The order triggered an immediate response from open school students, following which National Institute of Open Schooling requested the Ministry of Human Resource Development to intervene in the matter.

Finally, after almost an year, NIOS students along with thousands of other candidates studying in the open school system heaved a sigh of relief as they are once again eligible to write NEET 2018 following the reversal of the order by Medical Council of India.

According to reports, a meeting was conducted by Ministry of Human Resource Development with the Health Ministry requesting to direct the Medical Council of India to reverse the order citing the reason that such an order was contrary to the policy of the central government upholding equal education and opportunities for all students.
An official of the HRD said, "On many occasions when students fail the Class XII boards or get compartmental in one or more subjects, they choose an open school to clear their boards. It won't be justified if they are denied the opportunity to take NEET."

The letter by the Medical Council of India issued on August 9, 2017, ordering the debarment of NIOS and open school students from taking  NEET says, "the council office has got the matter legally examined as regards the issuance of eligibility certificate in respect of the applicants who have passed +2 from NIOS and are desirous of taking admission in MBBS or equivalent medical course in a medical university outside the country and it has been advised that any candidate who has not undergone classroom training in the subjects of Physics, Chemistry, Biology and English, simultaneous and co-terminus including taking practical examination in class 11 and 12, is not eligible for grant of eligibility certificate for the purpose of seeking admission in primary medicine course in a foreign medical institute and therefore also ineligible to appear in the screening test for obtaining registration to practice medicine in the country."

The above order applied to students who were yet to write their 12th board examination. Thousands of open school students appeared for NEET 2017, many of whom successfully cleared the test and gained admission into some of the medical colleges in the country.

Last year, several discrepancies in the examination related to paper leaks, language bias, impersonations and difficulty levels of the test came forward. Last-minute rules were set before the examination where extreme checking was conducted on each student. As a result, thousands of students felt harassed, some were made to change their clothes and shoes, and others were made to remove jewellery and other things from their person. Some candidates were also arrested.

Following protests by students and parents alike, the Central Board of Secondary Examination was ordered to conduct the examination again. This year, with the changes brought about much before the examination is conducted, it is expected that the examination will be conducted in a calm and fair manner as per the declared schedule.