The Medical Council of India (MCI) has decided to make changes in the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET), a common test for admission in medical colleges all over India. Officials said that the new syllabus will be declared by the second week of November. In April this year, a meeting of the core committee of NEET including MCI,
CBSE and central health ministry was held where it was decided to invite recommendations from all the states.
Nearly 1,970 people wrote e-mails to the core committee making useful suggestions to render the proposed test more adaptable to students of all the states. Of these 450 letters were written by students, parents and academicians from Gujarat. Following these suggestions and recommendations, the MCI has decided to effect changes in the syllabus of the test. The first NEET exam is scheduled to be held in May 2012.
Most of the states including Gujarat had suggested that NEET be also conducted in local languages so as to ensure that students who study in regional medium schools get a level playing field along with English medium students. Gujarat too had recommended that NEET should be conducted in Gujarati language. Other major block in Gujarat joining the test was that the NEET syllabus is modeled on the
CBSE syllabus and there was a huge gap in the state board syllabus and that of NEET.
"There was an estimated 40 per cent difference between NEET and Gujarat Secondary and Higher Secondary Education Board (GSHSEB) syllabus. The decision of MCI to change the syllabus is a positive step as it will offer the state students a little more level playing field", said an education department official.
Officials said that Gujarat is expected to join NEET from 2013 when students who will pass through the first ever semester system will pass out and will give national level entrance exams.
Source: timesofindia
