NEET-PG aspirants from Kerala in distress over allotment of exam centres in A.P., Telangana

The Hindu

6 days ago

Hundreds of NEET-PG aspirants in Kerala are distressed that they would end up travelling over a thousand km to write the NEET-PG entrance exam this year on August 3 as they have been allotted exam centres in far away places in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.
Every year, at least 20-24,000 students appear for the NEET-PG exam from Kerala. There are 13 exam centres in Kerala for the online exam. Usually, many students end up travelling to neighbouring Tamil Nadu to write the exam.
However, this year, a good number of students from the State have got exam centres in Telengana and Andhra Pradesh, in cities they have not even heard of, raising their anxiety levels and leaving them stressed over the travel and lodging arrangements that they would have to make to appear for the exam on August 3.
Students have now formed WhatsApp groups and made representation to the National Board of Examinations for Medical Sciences (NBEMS) through members of Parliament and the Indian Medical Association.
Indian Medical Association Junior Doctors' Network (IMA JDN) has now escalated the issue and have written to the Union Health Minister, J.P. Nadda, that having to travel well over a thousand km to far-off States on the eve of a high-profile exam was posing logistical issues as well as causing much distress to students, especially those from economically weaker families.
'Unfair to students'
The IMA JDN also pointed out that the fact that some students are able to appear for the exam in nearby cities while others are forced to spend money and time travelling to faraway places to write the same exam was unfair and liable to affect the mental well being of students.
Originally scheduled for June 15, NBE had planned to conduct the NEET PG exam in two shifts, with two different question papers. This was challenged in the Supreme Court and with the apex court pointing out that the double shift could lead to unfairness and arbitrariness, NBE was made to conduct the exam in a single shift and the date was postponed to August 3
'When this happened, we had to go into the NBE's portal and give our option for the exam centre again. We get to give only one option for the exam centre, which is supposed to be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Three of us who gave Palakkad as our option were allotted Sathupally in Telengana. A couple of my friends were lucky to have got Ernakulam, though they had opted for Thrissur. We later found that hundreds of us have been allotted exam centres in Telengana and Andhra Pradesh. Sathupally, we now know is over 1,300 km away from Thiruvananthapuram and even by flight or by train, connectivity issues are huge,' points out Anjali Ravindran, a student of Sree Gokulam Medical College in Thiruvananthaouram and a NEET -PG aspirant.
Unnecessary hassle
'If not the exam centre we opted for, any centre within our home State would have been manageable. This is an exam with such high stakes and instead of giving it all our focus, we are now stressing over our travel options, lodging arrangements and the money we will end up spending. There are also some NEET-PG aspirants, who are young mothers with babies and their plight is even more difficult,' says Dr.Ravindran.
The IMA JDN, has in their appeal to Mr. Nadda, requested that the NBEMS be directed to reopen the exam centre portal for the affected candidates and allow them to select centres within their home State or the nearest possible location. Undue travel stress could affect the students' performance in such a high-profile exam, which is held only once a year
'The NBEMS has been conducting this exam for years and they should have a clear idea approximately how many students should be expected to write the exam from each State. They should plan ahead so that there are adequate exam centres in every State for the students,' Sreejith N Kumar, chairman, IMAJDN Standing Committee, said.